


Noble Beasts

by Spunky0ne



Category: Bleach
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-06-20 05:36:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 31,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15527250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spunky0ne/pseuds/Spunky0ne
Summary: Identified as a perfect match by the Noble's General Council, Ichigo and Renji are forced to marry. At first resistant, the two find themselves having to protect each other as disapproving noble enemies threaten.





	1. Resonance

"Aren't you ready to go yet, Ichigo?" Rukia said impatiently, "Usually, isn't it the _girls_ who take a long time getting ready?"

"Shut up, will you?" Ichigo snapped irritably, sweat breaking out on his forehead as he tried to hold his body still, while one attendant worked to set his formal kimono in place and a second tried to make some kind of sense of his wild, bright ginger hair, "I'm almost done here."

He paused and met the eyes of one of the attendants.

"I _am_ almost done here, right Toshi?"

"Yes sir," the hazel-eyed youth answered, smiling, "It will just be a moment."

"Thanks. See, Rukia? Almost ready."

"Nii-sama's hell butterfly came almost twenty minutes ago. _He's_ ready and you know they have their first heirs that were born only last night. That's why Tetsuya's not going to the ceremony."

"Oh, so he finally decided to have those kids, huh?" Ichigo chuckled, "That's great."

"You can see them for a moment _if you ever get your stupid butt ready_!" Rukia shouted.

"Okay! Okay, I'm ready!" Ichigo shouted back, "Geez..."

"Come on!" Rukia huffed, pulling on his arm impatiently.

They left Shiba Manor and started down the front walkway, but were met halfway down by a tall, lovely black Arabian stallion.

"Hey there, Arashi," Ichigo greeted him, "Did Tetsuya se...whoa! What the hell?"

The stallion lunged while he was still mid-sentence, lowering his head and pitching the stunned Shiba heir into the air like a bale of hay that landed on his back just as Rukia landed behind him.

"I think Nii-sama sent him actually," Rukia concluded, "I told you that you were taking too long!"

"Sheesh..."

Ichigo went quiet, wrapping his arms around Rukia's slim waist as Arashi plunged forward, carrying the two down the long entrance road that led out of Shiba Manor and into the streets of the Seireitei. The tall stallion kept a fast, steady pace, moving gracefully along the street, through the central Seireitei, then along a northern path. He thundered through the entrance gates to the manor and came to a stop in the courtyard, where the two riders slid down and were greeted by a member of the house staff.

"Ichigo-sama, Rukia-chan, welcome," said the old woman who greeted him, "Come this way, please."

"Sure thing, Matsuko-san!" Ichigo answered cheerfully.

They followed the old woman down a wooden walkway, past several rooms to one where the garden doors stood open, letting in the fresh air. Stepping inside the room, Ichigo couldn't help but smile at the sight of Byakuya, beautifully dressed in a dark navy kimono with a pretty fall of pink sakura, his grey eyes proud as they gazed down at his newborn son. Beside him, a still pale but smiling Tetsuya reclined in swirls of royal blue, holding their newborn daughter.

"Hey, Byakuya, Tetsuya, wow! So, this is the family, ne? They're really cute."

"Akemi, Emiko," Byakuya said quietly, "This is our friend, Ichigo. Do not let his inability to be here on time fool you. He is a reliable and steadfast friend, and a powerful protector of Soul Society."

"All right, sorry I'm late," Ichigo chuckled, "And they're really cute. But, um, if they're twins, which one is the heir?"

"They are both heirs of the household," Tetsuya explained, "but as Akemi arrived first, as long as he proves out when he comes of age, he will inherit leadership."

"Ah."

"You look ready for the ceremony," Byakuya commented, "finally."

"Okay, I said I was sorry, but geez, this is a lot of clamor. It's kind of embarrassing. And I don't get why they have a ceremony like this anyway. I told those old farts that I didn't want to marry anybody."

"Well, the establishing of resonance is a step in the direction of choosing the best spouse for you. I assure you, the means they use is very reliable at determining compatibility. It will make the selection process more likely to yield a proper set of options for you to consider."

"Yeah, well, I'm not holding my breath."

"Just hope you aren't tasked with a true resonance," Tetsuya chuckled.

Huh? What's that?"

"A true resonance is a soul that balances perfectly with another," Byakuya explained, "It is a powerful, undeniable bond that is said to be unbreakable. And when one is found," he said, looking amorously back at Tetsuya, "instant approval is granted to the couple and they are immediately wed."

"What?" Ichigo gasped, his eyes widening, "You...you mean they might force me to marry somebody right there?"

"Don't worry," Byakuya said, shaking his head slightly and turning his son over to a male attendant, "True resonances like the one I share with Tetsuya are very rare. They are usually a sign that the chosen pair will either play a role in a significant undertaking or will give rise to significantly powerful children."

"Kids?" Ichigo said weakly, "Th-this is all moving a little fast."

"Just take a few breaths, stupid, it's going to be fine," Rukia laughed, "Nii-sama is right. True resonances are really rare, not even one in a generation, usually."

The group paused in their conversation as they were joined by a tall, red-haired man dressed in a formal, hunter green kimono with an attractive rust colored design.

"Renji!" Ichigo explained, looking surprised at the appearance of his friend, "You're going to this thing too? You look great!"

"Thanks," said the redhead, smiling, "Taichou invited me to sit with his clan. I thought it would be cool to see who they roped you into marrying."

"Shut up," Ichigo snapped irascibly, "They're just establishing resonance. I'm not getting married right this minute."

"Maybe not," Renji said with an air of certainty, "but pretty soon they'll have you married to someone and making heirs, for sure. That's what you signed on for by being an heir."

"Well, it's not like I had any choice in the matter," Ichigo objected, "I was born an heir. I didn't choose it."

"Well, you didn't abdicate either."

"Hell, do you even know what that word means?"

"What?"

"I told you, I am not marrying anyone today. You got that?"

"Sure. Hey, don't bust anything," Renji said, putting up his hands defensively, "Just don't blame me if you end up coming home with a pretty bride. It's been known to happen!"

"Byakuya never took this resonance test," Ichigo complained, "I don't see why they're making me do this."

"Byakuya-sama defied the laws of the clan and married Hisana-sama before he could be mated with someone. I think they would have all fainted if they had learned back then that the one he resonated with was me," Tetsuya chuckled, "And we would have been taken by surprise, because it wasn't until much later we sensed our growing connection. It is different with everyone. Do not worry, Ichigo-sama. It will be fine. Even if you are matched with someone like that, it will be someone very special."

"Eh, whatever, let's just get this over with. I feel kinda sick."

"Come on," Rukia laughed, taking Ichigo by the arm.

Byakuya leaned over and offered Tetsuya a gentle parting kiss, then joined Renji and followed them out of the room.

Ichigo walked quietly alongside Rukia as the group left Kuchiki Manor and headed for the huge Hall of the Noble's General Council. Noting his friend's obvious discomfort, Renji patted him on the back comfortingly.

"Hey, it's gonna be fine."

"Yeah, I'm sure it will," Ichigo replied, looking less than convinced.

They arrived at the grand hall and separated, Ichigo joining his father in the preparation room while the others moved on to the Kuchiki family's private section. Rukia and Byakuya stepped forward to speak to several of the Kuchiki elders, while Renji was drawn off by the sudden appearance of two familiar young men.

"Hey, Ikakku, Yumichika," he greeted them, "What are you guys doing here? This is wall to wall nobles!"

"Same as you," Ikkaku said, grinning, "We're guests of Zaraki taichou. All of the taichous and upper officers were invited. It's only the biggest damned event in the last century."

"Huh," Renji mused.

"Here," Ikakku said, slipping a small shot glass into the redhead's hand, "I swiped a sample of the liquid refreshments. This is cool. Watch."

He took a sip from his own cup as Yumichika took a sip from his. Renji inhaled in surprise as the two began to glow a soft purple color for a moment.

"Cool, huh? Try it."

Renji took a sip as the other two did and scowled as they continued to glow softly, but he remained looking perfectly normal.

"Shows what you know, assholes. It didn't even work on me."

"That's strange," commented Yumichika, "We've tried it on several friends and it worked on all of them."

"Shoot, I have to go," Renji said, downing the rest of the sweet, slightly narcotic tasting brew, "See you guys later."

He flash stepped back into the Kuchiki family section and took his seat in the gallery, just as the meeting was called to order and a pale looking Ichigo was led out into the central staging area, where a group of noble ladies and several anxious looking noble males waited.

"Welcome," Grand Councilor Yuudai announced warmly, "Leaders, elders, family and guests. We are pleased you have joined us for the official compatibility sensing of the newly appointed Shiba heir, Shiba Ichigo."

He paused as applause filled the room.

Ichigo went a shade paler.

"As the celebrations for the coming of age of the Shiba heir will last through the night, let us get this first, most important responsibility out of the way, shall we? We all want to move on to the evening's frivolity, ne?"

Polite chuckles sounded around the grand hall.

"Prospective spouses, will you please drink the compatibility elixir?"

"Compatibility elixir?" Renji whispered to himself, remembering the drink his friends had given him, "Figures...stupid asses."

The gathered nobles and their guests watched closely as the prospective mates drank, then Ichigo was handed a small cup of the light colored brew. He took a steadying breath and took a sip, then focused on the gathered group in front of him. He breathed a sigh of relief that none of the prospectives showed any kind of reaction.

Then, he realized that he and another person were glowing brightly.

"What is this? What's going on?" Ichigo exclaimed, "What the hell is this, some kind of joke? Why are Renji and I glowing?! He didn't even take the damned elixir!"

Renji blushed furiously as the reddish glow around them intensified and began a soft pulsation.

"Holy hell," Renji said, standing, "I am so going to kill those guys!"

He glanced at Rukia, whose face had gone white and seemed unable to speak at all. Byakuya stared at Renji in wonder, then looked back at Ichigo, who was staring at Renji too. A few hands started to clap, and slowly the clapping built into a heady roar around them. The grand councilor waited until the room had quieted, then addressed the two still glowing men.

"Gentlemen," he said calmly, "It seems we have an anomaly. But, as nobles, we are required to follow our laws and immediately marry these two chosen. Abarai Renji, will you please join us?"

Renji stared at the man blankly, his feet refusing to move.

"Go," Rukia breathed in a stunned voice, "Renji, go!"

She gave him a shove, and the redhead proceeded forward as the council guards stepped aside and made room for him to walk to the central stage. He stopped and stood alongside Ichigo, not daring to look at his friend's face as the grand councilor began to read about the blessings of true resonance, then laid a hand on each of them.

"W-wait, this is happening too fast!" Ichigo pleaded softly, "Can't we just...?"

"Shut up," Renji whispered, "Don't you get it? We don't really have a choice. It's a big deal to them. Just, it's got to be a mistake. We'll figure it out later. Just don't disgrace your clan in front of everyone. Go along for now. We'll fix it later."

"Ah...okay, you're probably right," Ichigo sighed nervously, "Sorry. Go on."

"By the determination of true resonance, you, Shiba Ichigo and you, Abarai Renji are hereby bound in holy matrimony for all of the days of your lives. May you live to bring honor and dignity to the Shiba household and bless the family with many heirs!"

"Heirs?" Ichigo repeated weakly, "What's he talking about?"

He thought of Tetsuya, looking pale, but pleased as he sat in Byakuya's bed, holding their daughter.

"Wh-what?" he mused dizzily, forgetting where he was for a moment as the reality of things hit him forcefully, weakening his legs beneath him, "Me and Renji? We are married and...and b-babies?"

A roar of applause went up around them, startling Ichigo back into awareness, then it faded and the grand councilor smiled widely.

"Ichigo, Renji, please now share a kiss as the first gift of your new marriage."

Ichigo stared at the redhead, going sheet white as Renji quivered slightly, but kept his composure, leaning towards him and moving to kiss him.

"What the hell?" Ichigo squawked, shoving Renji away, "There's no fucking way I'm kissing Renji! The guy is my FRIEND!"

"Hey, baka," Renji said reprovingly, "Like it or not, this guy is now your husband. I don't want that any more than you do, but the least you could do is not embarrass the hell out of your family. I said it would be okay. Calm down and just go along with it for now."

"NO! NO WAY! I'm not marrying Renji and having kids with him! You guys are all crazy if you think I am!"

"Ichigo," Byakuya's solemn voice spoke, amplified by the microphone in the family's section.

Ichigo looked up and spotted the Kuchiki leader standing and looking up at him. He paused, swallowing hard as Byakuya continued.

"It is understandable that, given your recent discovery as the heir to your clan, you might have reservations. but please trust that this ceremony is well supported in our history, and that if you and Renji have reacted to each other this way, you are meant to be joined. I know it is asking a great deal. Much is asked of we who are chosen to lead. Sometimes, what is asked is difficult, but we must persevere. You are no longer an outsider, but are a member of one of the five great noble families, and will someday lead yours. Please honor that by maintaining your composure here in the seat of our power."

Ichigo stared back at Byakuya in silence for several long moments, then sighed, nodded briefly and lowered his head.

"Sorry," he said, more calmly, taking Renji's hand.

He leaned towards the redhead and brought his frowning lips to Renji's for a moment, blinking in surprise, first at how attractive the redhead's scent was and how warm and fiery his lips tasted.

"Ichigo, Renji, by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you partners in life, bonded in love and blessed by the elders of the Noble's General Council. Let the festivities begin!"


	2. Tattooed Bride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichigo and Renji prepare for their consummation.

"Damn, this is really weird," Renji mused, watching the revelry going on all around them. In their respective sections of the grand hall, the noble families, Gotei taichous and their guests sat at tables heaping with gourmet food, while on the main floor, couples danced to a classic waltz. Everywhere, people laughed and talked, and the most popular topic seemed to be the new Shiba heir and his unexpected impromptu wedding.

"You said it," Ichigo agreed, taking a sip of refreshment, then shaking his head and looking back at the redhead, "So, you said that we would find someone and start working on getting this thing undone after the wedding. We're married now and everyone's distracted, so who do you think we should talk to so we can get out of this mess? That head councilor guy. He seemed pretty understanding."

"I don't think you're getting it," Renji said quietly, "Ichigo, look at these people. They all accepted us, just like that, just because we resonated so strongly in front of them."

"You're not really buying into that crap, are you, Renji? Come on! You and I are friends, but we aren't attracted to each other like that. We never have been!"

"I've been thinking about that too," Renji went on, still watching the revelers, "Taichou told me that he and Tetsuya-san were close for years and they didn't become lovers. Hell, Taichou married someone else first."

"So, how does that prove that this stupid elixir thing works. Shouldn't they have known sooner if they were a resonant couple?"

"I don't know," Renji admitted, "But I think that maybe it's not just a matter of being compatible, Ichigo."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if Taichou and Tetsuya-san knew each other and had resonant souls, but didn't realize it until later, maybe being true resonants is a potential that has to be sparked somehow."

"I'm not quite following you, buddy. You want to tell me that in a way I can understand?"

"Okay," Renji said, frowning, "Say you have a match, right?"

"Okay."

"And it's in a box. The match is in the box and the thing you strike it on is on the outside of the box, right?"

"Yeah."

"If no one ever takes the match out of the box and strikes it, the match is still a match, right? It still has the potential to get lit someday."

"Yeah, but..."

"Maybe that's what this resonance thing is about," the redhead suggested, "Maybe that elixir was just an attempt to strike the match for us, because we have that potential."

Ichigo considered the suggestion for a few moments, then sighed.

"Even if that's true, it shouldn't be up to a group of old men to do that for us. If we're so 'meant to be together,' then why don't we feel anything for each other."

"You didn't feel anything when we kissed?" Renji asked, looking surprised, "nothing at all?"

Ichigo bit his lip gently, remembering his surprise at his own reaction to Renji's scent and the taste of his lips.

_But that doesn't mean..._

"Ichigo?"

"Did you?"

"Huh?" Renji queried, blinking.

"Did you feel something when we kissed?" Ichigo asked.

"I don't know. Maybe," the redhead said, shaking his head.

"I might have too, but I really don't think what I felt was enough to make me want to marry you. You're a great guy and all, a hell of a fighter."

"You're not so bad, yourself," Renji said, smirking and blushing.

"But that doesn't mean that we should be shacked up and having babies, does it?"

Renji frowned more deeply and took another swallow of his drink.

"We need to get this fixed, Renji. Come on. Let's go find someone who can undo all of this."

Renji loosed a long sigh of capitulation.

"Fine. Whatever."

"Don't you want to get out of this?" Ichigo asked, looking at his friend more closely, "You don't really want to be married to me, do you?"

"No."

"Then, why are you acting like that?"

Renji chuckled and smirked.

"Because we barely got married and I'm already getting dumped!" he laughed.

"Whew!" Ichigo sighed, "You had me going there for a sec. I thought you might be really buying into that whole resonant crap."

He looked around, missing entirely the pensive look that crossed Renji's face in reaction to his words.

"There's the grand councilor guy. Come on."

Ichigo grabbed Renji's arm and the two headed towards the man, who turned and greeted them with a smile.

"Ah, the happy couple, and just in time," he said, looking pleased.

"Just in time?" Ichigo repeated, looking back at the man curiously, "What do you mean?"

"I have just been informed that the consummation chamber is ready. You and Abarai-san may proceed to the chamber immediately."

"What the heck?" gasped Renji, his eyes rounding.

"Whoa, hold up!" Ichigo exclaimed, "C-consummation chamber? What's that about? What's the big hurry? We just got married, and we barely got to join the party. Now, you want us to go and...and _do that_ with everyone out here knowing what we're in they're doing? No way!"

"Well," the grand councilor said, still in a pleasant tone, "It is the tradition to have the marriage consummated during the celebration, then to toast the new couple and wish them fruitfulness."

"Now, hold on for one darned minute!" Ichigo yelled, making several of the guests turn their heads and look at him curiously, "Has everyone here gone crazy? You know, no one ever asked Renji and me if we wanted to be married and no one asked if we wanted to be having sex while people partied outside our bedroom, knowing what we were in there doing and...and _babies_! This is all going _way_ too fast!"

"Ichigo's got a point," Renji said, frowning, but keeping his composure, "This is going really fast. Are we really expected to, just like that, get married and have sex and make babies? I get that this compatibility thing is a tradition."

"Oh, but it is not just a tradition, my boys," the grand councilor explained, "It is a sign of the greatness of what's between you. It honors the great potential for what you will become."

"But that's what I'm saying!" Ichigo objected, "There's nothing between me and Renji! Nothing! We're friends, that's it! We're not lovers!"

"Ichigo's right. And if we were going to be, shouldn't we feel something?"

"Grand Councilor, they are ready for you!" called an attendant.

"Ah, very good, very good," the man said, dismissing Ichigo and Renji with a wave, "Go with your escort now. I will make the announcement."

"They make an announcement?" Renji mused, "What? Everyone party harder, the unhappy couple will now go and fuck while they eat and dance?"

"This is impossible!" Ichigo groaned, shaking his head in dismay as the two were rounded up and guided towards the consummation chamber, "Renji, what do we do?"

"You're asking me?" the redhead called back as the grand councilor's voice sounded and raucous applause roared through the room, "I don't know what the hell we can do! Why do you think I know better than you?"

"Well, you're always talking like you think you're smarter than me!"

"I do not! And I have no idea what to do!"

"It's like everyone's gone crazy, really crazy!"

"Hey!" Renji objected as the door to the central hall closed and the two were guided into a small dressing area, "What's going on?"

"Ah," said the man guiding them, "First you will be dressed for bed, then an assistant will guide you on..."

"On what?" Ichigo cried, "What positions we should use while in bed together?"

"This is getting crazier by the moment!" Renji added.

"Your couple's counselor will be available to answer any questions you have about your first intercourse."

"Oh great," Renji said, rolling his eyes.

"I thought you said we'd just go along with the ceremony an then we'd fix this!" Ichigo complained.

"What the hell do you think _I_ can do?" Renji yelled back at him, "Hey, what the...get your hands off me!"

Ichigo echoed the redhead's exclamation of dismay as their attendants began to remove their kimonos.

"Do you even know how long it took Toshi to get me into that damned thing? What are you doing?"

Within moments, the two stunned men stood in front of a full length mirror, dressed in white yukatas and blinking in dismay.

"I think I feel a little dizzy," Ichigo said breathlessly.

"Heeeeeeelloooooo!" called a pleased male voice.

Ichigo and Renji's heads turned and their jaws dropped in perfect unison at the sight of the flamboyant and garishly dressed blonde man who entered the room.

"Why don't you boys run along?" he said, dismissing the smirking attendants.

"I think I'm gonna be sick," grunted Renji.

"Who _is_ this guy?" Ichigo asked, looking confused.

"I am Yukihana Hinata, the tall, oddly feminine looking man said, smiling widely, "I am your couple's adjustment counselor."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Ichigo and Renji said together.

"Oh my, aren't you a fetching couple!" he complimented them, "Shiba Ichigo, the gem of the newly aroused Shiba clan!"

"A-aroused?" Ichigo mused.

"And you, Renji dear!" Hinata went on, "You are just all lovely, wild, lower-Rukon _animal_ , aren't you? Pity a ferocious thing like you will be bottoming tonight, ne?"

"B-bottom? Renji said, swallowing hard.

"Sorry, tiger," Hinata said, smirking, "but Ichigo-chan is the noble heir of the mighty house Shiba and _you_ , little red tiger, are his lovely wife!"

"Wife?" Renji cried, his face blushing brightly, "Don't you fucking call me that! I'm no one's goddamned wife!"

"Oh, _temper, temper_ , Renji dear," Hinata said, a little too pleasantly, "There's a place and time for that kind of feisty behavior, but it's not here and now. You'll want to pay attention, because if you don't, before morning comes, my little lotus flower, someone's going to be needing the fourth division."

"What?" Ichigo cried, looking alarmed. "What the..."

"Are you both virgins?" Hinata asked blithely.

"What kind of a question is that?" Ichigo yelled, his face burning brightly.

"Don't you dare say things like that to us!" shouted Renji.

"Okay," Hinata said, smiling, "Both virgins."

"What?" cried Ichigo.

"How the hell did he know?" mused Renji, looking confused.

"Okay boys, here's the scoop. You two have to go into that next room and engage in your very first anal sex, which I will warn you, can be a very painful thing if you don't know what you're doing, which you don't, of course. Oh did you both have some alcohol at the party?"

"What? No, I'm not twenty-one!" objected Ichigo.

"Me either," sighed Renji.

"Oh dear. We're not getting off to a very good start, are we?" noted Hinata, "Ah well, we'll just improvise. Renji, dear, would you like a little pain block?"

"A p-pain block?" the redhead said, paling.

"You might need one. It's okay, though. I'm sure that being taken by Ichigo-chan won't be much more than like getting a vaccination, just in a sort of sensitive place."

"A...vaccination," Renji said, going more pale and placing a hand on his stomach, "I fucking _hate_ needles!"

"Oh, that's no _needle_ you're going to be jabbed with, Renji-chan," Hinata said, smirking wickedly.

"I am _really_ starting to hate this guy," Renji said dryly.

"Starting to?" Ichigo said, shaking his head.

"Come now, gentlemen," Hinata said, guiding them to the door to an inner chamber, "Beyond this door is the consummation chamber."

He slipped something into Ichigo's hand and nodded.

"What's this?"

"Lubricant. Use a lot, dear. You're mounting a virgin tiger and watch out. I think he bites!"

"Fucking pervert!" snapped the ginger-haired youth.

"Any last questions, boys?"

"Are you for real?"

"I thought you said you were going to give me a pain block!"

"On you go!" said Hinata, throwing open the chamber door, "Step inside."

The two young men stepped into the chamber, then made sounds of surprise as a barrier rose around them.

"That is the consummation barrier," Hinata explained from outside the barrier, still smiling, "It shuns all of your powers and will not open until Renji-chan's no longer an anal virgin. Have a pleasant evening, gentlemen!"

The door to the chamber slammed, leaving the two stunned men standing side-by-side and looking at the closed door.

"Renji?" Ichigo said weakly.

"Huh?"

"What do we do?"

Renji swallowed hard and walked to the bed, where he sat down and gave a long sigh.

"Well, we don't have any powers, so we can't break out, and the door isn't opening until we have sex, so I'd say the answer is obvious."

"I can't have sex with you!"

"What are _you_ complaining about, Mr. Shiba heir?" Renji said crossly, "I'm the one getting screwed here!"

"I'm not having sex with you!"

"Then, we're not getting out of here."

"They can't keep us in here forever!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"We're souls. We can live without food, so it's not like we'll die. An we have no way of breaking out. Don't you get it, Ichigo? We're stuck. We have no choice."

Ichigo paused, staring at the closed doors, then ran at them, striking the barrier with his fists.

"Would you stop that, dumbass?" Renji sighed, "It's not gonna work, okay?"

"This is nuts! These people are all fucking crazy!"

"Yeah?" Renji said, playing with the ends of the tie at his waist, "Well, those crazy people have us locked in here and won't let us out again until we have sex. So, let's just get it over with, okay?"

Ichigo stopped breathing for a moment, then turned to face the redhead.

"You're really okay with that?" he asked.

"Not really," Renji said in a low voice, "but I just kinda want to get this over with and go home."

"Home?" Ichigo, "You mean, Shiba Manor? Cause, according to them, that's where you live now."

Renji went a shade paler.

"Shit."

"So, what do we do?" Ichigo asked again, more softly.

Renji moved so that he was kneeling on the bed, then opened his yukata, exposing the full display of his tattoos.

"Just do what you have to do," he said quietly, "We'll have sex, then once we get out of here, they can't make us do anything else, right?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Okay then, go ahead."

Renji flinched and shut his eyes tightly as Ichigo opened his yukata and climbed onto the bed.

_Kami, I hope he isn't very big!_


	3. Red Blossom

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichigo and Renji do what they have to...

"Renji?"

"What?!" the redhead exclaimed in a flustered tone, flinching skittishly and his red-brown eyes flying open as the Shiba heir's fingers touched his arm.

"Whoa, you're kind of jumpy," Ichigo observed with an amused look.

"You'd be jumpy too if someone was going to be screwing you!" the redhead snapped crossly.

"Geez, take it easy. I haven't even done anything yet and you're already sweating all over and turning red."

"Would you shut up!" Renji complained, keeping his eyes from meeting Ichigo's, "You know, you're not making this any easier."

"S-sorry," the ginger-haired man apologized, "It's just that, well..."

"What?" Renji asked, frowning.

"I was just wondering," Ichigo went on, holding up the bottle of lubricant and scowling, "Do I put this on you or me?"

_Oh my kami..._

"You're asking _me_ that?" snapped the redhead, "Like _I'm_ gonna know something like that! I'm just as fucking _virgin_ as you are!"

"Damn, I was just asking. What's wrong with you, anyway? I thought you were the one who said we should just go along with them. Great idea, by the way."

"Well, I didn't see you coming up with any more brilliant options. What are we supposed to do? Pound on the door like a couple of idiots with no powers? Sheesh..."

"All right, fine," Ichigo said crossly, tossing the tube onto the nightstand, "If you're going to be a prick about it, then we just won't use it."

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second!" Renji objected, grabbing the tube, "Hinata, the love genius said to use a lot of it or someone, probably me, would get hurt. I guess that's not a big deal to _you_ , but I'd really like to avoid ending up in the fourth for something like that! Can you just imagine? 'So, Abarai fukutaichou, how did you do this to yourself?' I don't think so. We're using this stuff."

"Okay, fine. Then, how? On who?" Ichigo asked, crossing his arms.

"Think about it, moron!" Renji huffed, opening the tube and grabbing Ichigo's hand.

Ichigo blinked and stared as Renji squeezed out a small amount onto his husband's slightly shaking fingers.

"What part of you is penetrating me?" the redhead asked dryly, "Rub that on. It'll probably get you hard."

"And what are you gonna be...?"

"Shut up, okay?"

"I was just..."

"Well, don't!"

"Fine, whatever..."

Renji turned aside as Ichigo blushed and began to apply the lubricant to his already thickening cock. Almost instantly, he began to react to the warmth and gentle friction by thickening even more and leaking pale fluid from the flushed tip. A moment later, a breath of Renji's pleasant, masculine scent reached him, and he felt his erect penis twitch in response.

_I'm getting turned on by Renji's scent?_

_He does smell good._

He watched closely as his half-turned spouse continued to look down at his concealed nether region. Without quite thinking, he extended a hand and pulled the tie out of Renji's hair. The long strands tumbled down around Renji's tattooed shoulders and the redhead glared at him with a surprised and angry expression.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"Shoot, I was just trying to relax you a little," Ichigo answered, withdrawing his hand, "You're so tense. That can't be good, considering what we're gonna be doing. Shouldn't you calm down a little before we try...you know...?"

"Yeah, probably," Renji sighed, deflating.

"They left some other stuff here on the nightstand," Ichigo suggested, picking up a small bottle, "Here's some almond oil. You want me to give you a back rub?"

"I...I don't know. I guess," Renji replied anxiously.

"You need to calm down if you're going to get aroused."

"Well, thanks for the advice, Mr. _also never had sex before_. And besides, it doesn't matter whether or not I get hard. You're the one who need to be hard."

"Hey, I'm just trying help," Ichigo said, moving closer, "We're going to be having sex, so I guess we should get used to touching each other a little. I just thought that if I rub your back and shoulders, you'd relax and get more used to being touched by me."

"Okay, fine," Renji said, turning away and letting his yukata fall away from his shoulders.

Ichigo froze for a moment as the material fell away, revealing the intricate display of bold tattoos that ran wildly over the redhead's shoulders and streamed down his long back. He reeled as another breath of Renji's scent drifted across his senses, making him harden more.

"It...ah, it looks like you have a few more of these," Ichigo observed, moving closer and examining a few light scars that marred the otherwise golden-tanned skin.

"Yeah, well, with the war and getting sent to the palace for training, I got stronger."

_I wonder if he has them...there._

_He'd kill me if I asked him._

_Yeah, he'd definitely kill me._

"They look good."

"Thanks."

Ichigo felt a shiver go through him as he moved around behind Renji and dribbled the warm, scented oil onto the redhead's shoulders, while Renji captured his hair in one hand and held it out of the way. He flinched at the first touch of Ichigo's fingers, then took a steadying breath and let it out again slowly, relaxing slightly as his husband's fingers worked at the tightly knotted muscles.

"You're still pretty anxious," Ichigo commented.

"You're going to be ramming your dick up my ass," Renji snapped, still sounding annoyed, but a shade less angry, "Wouldn't you be?"

"Yeah, probably," the ginger-haired man chuckled, making Renji catch his breath and give a little sigh as the muscles began to loosen, "Sorry, by the way. I know you'd rather be doing this with someone else."

"Hmmm," Renji huffed, "not really."

"Huh?" Ichigo said, looking surprised, "There's no one you're even interested in?"

"I don't know," the redhead said, his frown deepening, "First, I was focused on trying to get stronger so that I could talk to Rukia again, and then she was in trouble and we went to war twice. Who had time to get interested in anyone?"

"Do you even know if you like boys or girl?" Ichigo asked, "Or maybe either would be okay."

"Are you asking me or are you trying to decide for yourself?" Renji asked, smirking.

"I don't know," Ichigo confessed, "I didn't really think about that. I guess I just assumed because of my mom and dad that I would marry a girl. But...and please don't get mad, okay? I kind of like how it feels doing this...rubbing your back, you know."

"Yeah, that part doesn't feel too bad."

"I didn't mind kissing you either," the ginger-haired man went on, "You're good at kissing, which is strange since you are a virgin. Must be natural talent, ne?"

"No, stupid," Renji said, shaking his head and smiling slightly, "Just because I haven't had sex, doesn't mean that I don't know anything. I kissed a few people."

"Boys or girls?" Ichigo asked, sliding his hands slowly down Renji's tattooed sides and coaxing another more contented sound from deeper in his chest.

"Rukia and I kissed some, but it was just practice kissing to see what it was like. We were never really interested in each other that way."

"You kiss any guys?"

Ichigo frowned at the sudden quiver that went through Renji's body at the question.

"Sorry, you don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"It's fine. It's just a little complicated," Renji said, turning to look at him.

He started to say more, but paused as he noticed Ichigo's semi-aroused member.

"Is something wrong?" Ichigo asked.

"No, it's just that if you, you know, want to be able to...use that, it needs to be harder. Do you want me to...?"

Ichigo's heart fluttered fitfully in his chest at the question.

"Ah...um...okay," he stammered, the blush on his skin deepening.

Renji moved closer, his expression calm, but slightly flustered as he brought his face close to Ichigo's and tentatively met his lips. Ichigo shivered in reaction, his heart pounding harder as Renji's hair tickled his cheek and their kissing continued. Renji's lips parted and his warm tongue traced Ichigo's flushed lips, then teased the ginger-haired man's mouth open, as he let their eyes meet for a moment, causing a heady jolt in their respective loins. They kissed several times with their mouths open, then Renji went into a slow descent down the paler man's soft throat, then down his lean torso. Ichigo started to speak, but lost his breath as Renji's red mouth entranced him as it slowly explored him, moving ever closer to his now very erect member.

_Is Renji...?_

_Is he going to...?_

_Oh!_

Dizziness swept over the ensnared Shiba heir as Renji honed in on his nether region.

"Are you sure you're okay doing that?" Ichigo asked, "I just..."

"It's okay. It's flavored and okay for that," Renji assured him, "I actually looked at the label for a second. Trust me."

Ichigo couldn't quite suppress a shudder as Renji touched his thighs to coax them apart, then he bent forward and lowered himself so that he was spread out on the bed, his red hair splayed out everywhere, and the tattoos on his back moving with him as he wrapped his red mouth around Ichigo's swollen cock and began a shockingly pleasant stimulation. Ichigo tried to speak, but couldn't find the breath for words as Renji's mouth sucked him, sending fresh jolts of arousal through him. All he could manage were soft, senseless sounds of contentedness.

He suddenly realized that he was smiling.

_It feels good._

_But he was so nervous before. I wonder if he's really okay._

He shifted slightly, then blushed fiercely as the sensations in his nether region increased to the point where he couldn't quite hold still. His hips moved slightly with the redhead's movements, and he moaned and panted softly in reaction.

"Th-that feels good," he managed softly, surprising himself as he said the words, "You're good at that. Have you done it before?"

He barely stifled a groan as his cock slid out of Renji's mouth and the redhead lifted himself away and met Ichigo's eyes with a guarded expression.

"You really want to know?" he asked in a lower, more pensive tone.

"I do it you feel like telling me," he answered, forgetting completely the sudden loss of physical connection, "You look like it wasn't a good thing. Did someone force you to do that?"

"Not exactly," Renji confessed, "Just, sometimes while we were growing up, things would get really bad. You know, it would get too cold or there would be so little food to go around that we got kind of desperate. Some of the older boys and girls had sex for money. I couldn't make myself go all the way with anyone, but a few times I was offered food or money to suck someone off. I wouldn't have done it if it was just Rukia and me, but there were some really little kids in our group then."

"Damn," Ichigo sighed, "I knew you guys had it rough, but I didn't really think about what that meant. I'm sorry if I made you feel bad remembering that."

"It's okay. I don't care so much. I mean, we didn't have a lot of choice. We just did what we had to do to get by."

"Is that why it was not so hard for you to go along with this, once you realized we were locked in here and not getting out?"

"Yeah, probably," Renji mused, almost smiling, "I do tend to have a 'let's just get through the shit' attitude when I get cornered. I guess it's because we had to learn to pick our battles. Too much fight and too much pride would only have gotten someone killed."

"Well, no one's getting killed here," Ichigo said, leaning closer to him and bring their lips together again teasingly, "and I don't even feel bad about us having sex right now."

"That's because you're aroused, dumbass," Renji laughed softly.

"What about you?" Ichigo asked, reaching out suddenly and flipping the edge of Renji's yukata aside.

He sucked in a surprised breath, not noticing at all how Renji blazed bright red all over and hastily covered himself again.

_It is tattooed!_

_It's...!_

"Don't you dare do that again, asshole!" Renji snapped, turning away.

He realized after a few moments that Ichigo hadn't answered, and looked back over his shoulder to find the ginger-haired man wide-eyed and staring blankly ahead.

"What's the matter with you?" Renji demanded, "Yeah, my dick's tattooed. I'm a freak! So what!"

He started to turn his back on Ichigo again, but went still as Ichigo's hand touched his shoulder and the Shiba heir's mouth sought his.

"What are you...mphh!" Renji managed, as Ichigo fell forward and Renji came down on his back.

Renji felt a jolt go through his belly at the molten look of the Shiba heir's brown eyes and the sudden tightening of the hands that held him down as Ichigo kissed him more hungrily.

"What are you doing? Are you nuts? Get off of me! You don't even know what you're...!"

Renji's breath was stolen away as Ichigo shifted, and his hand slid down between them. He felt a touch on his vulnerable anus that made him stiffen reflexively, then felt the Shiba heir's hot breath on his earlobe, pleading softly with him to relax. He wasn't sure whether it was that softer, wanting tone, the look in the other man's eyes, or that he really wanted to be taken, but he relaxed his body and spread his thighs wider, flinching and holding on to Ichigo's shoulders as he pushed his penis slowly inside the redhead's offered bottom, then stopped to catch his breath.

"Are you okay?" he panted.

"I'm f-fine," Renji answered, not sure at all if he really was or not, but feeling hard as a rock and anxious for release, "Go ahead."

The redhead flushed instantly at the heavy, desirous sound that escaped his parted lips as Ichigo moved, but his embarrassment was swiftly forgotten as pleasant friction stole away his mind and left him focused solely on the giving and taking of surprisingly intense pleasure.

Already made senseless with desire for completion, Ichigo felt additional jolts of erotic fascination at seeing Renji's surprisingly beautiful, naked, tattooed body stretched out and writhing heedlessly, beneath him. His hand slid down between them and found Renji's hardened cock, then moved in time with their thrusts, making the redhead growl almost threateningly as their mutual pleasure mounted.

Ichigo couldn't have decided what he enjoyed more, seeing the naked redhead spread out on his back, his face written over with arousal and erotic desire, or when he suddenly flipped over, sending the long strands of his hair flying around him and came down on his belly, snapping impatiently at the Shiba heir to enter him from behind. That, of course, offered Ichigo an equally enjoyable view of the lovely array of tattoos on Renji's shoulders, back, full round bottom and on the backs of his long thighs.

_For some reason, it's so sexy, the way me doing this to him makes him move so much, make those noises, and makes him grab the blankets like that..._

_Oh my kami, he's incredible!_

_R-renji!_

Ichigo felt a sudden flash of heat in his loins, and his body throbbed sweetly as he tumbled over into long, hot jolts of pale semen. Renji expelled a howl of approval, raising his hips and shuddering as the Shiba heir's heat flooded him inside, sending his still writhing body into release.

The two collapsed, still engaged, exchanging hard kisses over the redhead's sweating shoulder. A moment later, a soft red glow began to rise around Renji, making the two panting men pause and stare in surprise.

"What the hell? What's going on?" Ichigo mused.

Panic flooded the Shiba heir's body as Renji's eyes glazed over suddenly, then closed.

"Renji, what's the matter? Are you okay? Renji!" he called frantically.

He patted his spouse's face gently, but received no response.

"Are you breathing?" Ichigo whispered, more to himself than the redhead, as he checked his mate for signs of life, "Okay, breathing and has a pulse, but out like a light. Damn!"

He got out of the bed and tied his yukata shut, started towards the door, then turned back and quickly tied his unconscious husband's yukata back in place before returning to the locked door.

"Hey, there's something wrong with Renji! He's passed out! C'mon, open the goddamned door! We need some help in here!"

He almost jumped out of his skin as the door opened and Hinata appeared, followed by a healer.

"Oh my, look what you've done, you horrid _beast_!" he exclaimed.

"But, I didn't...!"

Hinata smiled widely.

"Just kidding! Don't worry about anything. Your little lotus blossom is fine," he assured the sputtering Shiba heir, "It's perfectly normal for the bearer to pass out with the conception of the heir."

"C-conception?" Ichigo stammered, going pale, "You mean that Renji is already..."

"Pregnant!" Hinata finished, looking pleased, "Good job, by the way. Sometimes it takes a few throws to get it right, but beginner or no, you did a supreme job, and you really rocked your little clan wife's world. You are _such_ a stallion, aren't you?"

"Renji is pregnant?" Ichigo repeated, blinking and staring at the redhead's still softly glowing body.

"Oh my, the poor boy is in shock," Hinata mused, smirking, "Well, what's say we get your little wifey home and tucked into bed, okay?"

"Wh-what?"

Ichigo barely heard as he was herded back out into the dressing area.

"Hey, what are you doing? Shouldn't I stay with...?"

"Oh, no you don't!" Hinata chided him, "You are getting dressed and going back to the party."

"What? No way! Renji is unconscious!"

"I told you. He's fine. And _you_ have an appearance to make."

"I've had all I can take of this bullshit!" Ichigo steamed, grabbing his kimono and fighting his way back into it, then turning towards the door that led back into the gathering hall, "I'm going home with Renji!"

He opened the door, then stared in shock as the partygoers turned and began to applaud.

"These people are nuts!" he managed, shaking his head as Hinata took him in tow and thrust him back into the crowd.


	4. The Little Things

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renji wakes up and is shocked at how his life has been altered.

"U-ugh..." Renji groaned, stirring slightly and encountering a feeling like being weighted down and slowly suffocated, "Wh-what th'hell? O-oh..."

One red-brown eye cracked open and instantly squinted at the bright light coming into the room. When he moved again, his head spun unnaturally and the bed he was in seemed to rock enough to make his hands clench the bedding to hang on.

_Damn, that must've been some party._

_I don't remember anything after..._

He made a discomfited sound and quivered for a moment, remembering.

_That was weird._

_I wonder if I dreamed it all._

_Fuck..._

Feeling began to return to Renji's body slowly, which, after a few moments, proved to be not such a good thing. He wasn't sure if it was the dizziness, but his stomach turned threateningly and his head throbbed more and more painfully by the moment.

_This has got to be the worst damned hangover I've ever had._

_Where the hell am I, anyway?_

He let his sleepy eyes adjust slowly to the light, then carefully moved his head to study the room more closely.

_Ichigo's room?_

_What the fuck am I doing here?_

_I must've passed out._

_Great._

It seemed odd, too, that not only was he in the Shiba heir's bed, but that he was _alone_ in his friend's bed. He listened for a few minutes, trying to hold his body still, so as not to evoke any more head throbs or bouts of dizziness, but encountered only stillness.

_This is really weird._

_What's going on?_

Clenching his teeth and taking a steadying breath, he lifted himself cautiously and sat up. The room spun harder and Renji, once again, couldn't make sense of why he was where he was or why he was alone where he was. The only thing that did reach him was the only thing about waking that did make sense to him.

_Damn, I'm gonna be late to work. Taichou will kill me. He hates it when I come stumbling in late._

He dragged himself out of the bed and stood, catching his breath at the sudden swirl of nausea the movement caused and the harsher pounding in his head.

_Fuck this. I'm going home. I really need a shower and a change of clothes._

He caught a flash image of himself, dressed in a formal kimono and surrounded by more people dressed that same way, then two of his friends approached.

_"Here," Ikakku said, slipping a small shot glass into the redhead's hand, "I swiped a sample of the liquid refreshments. This is cool. Watch."_

_He took a sip from his own cup as Yumichika took a sip from his. Renji inhaled in surprise as the two began to glow a soft purple color for a moment._

_"Cool, huh? Try it."_

_Renji took a sip as the other two did and scowled as they continued to glow softly, but he remained looking perfectly normal._

_"Shows what you know, assholes. It didn't even work on me."_

"Ugh, I'm going to kill you the next time I see you guys."

The sudden sound of footsteps outside the door made Renji pause and listen.

"Has he been lucid at all yet?" Hinata's voice asked, sending a fresh feeling of nausea through Renji.

_That guy's going on my hit list too._

"No sir, he has only slept peacefully since he was brought home."

"Oh my, that must be some kind of record. But then, Shiba Ichigo is quite powerful. Ah, whatever," the counselor sighed flippantly, "Let me know as soon as he wakes. Goodness, we do have a lot of work to do on these boys, don't we?"

_I really am going to either throw up or kill someone if I have to deal with that asshole right now._

Instead, Renji bit his lip gently and moved in silent steps to the open window. He looked out and spotted a few house guards at their posts around the yard. Not wanting to explain himself, the redhead waited until they were facing away, then flash stepped down and used the foliage to hide his escape.

_Thank kami for that stealth training Taichou did with me. I really don't want to deal with this crap right now. Nope. I'll go home, shower and get myself to work. I'm sure I'll feel better once I'm out of this place. I am so fucking glad I'm not noble. Those people are crazy._

The thought made him smile as he engaged his flash step.

He staggered and almost crashed to the ground, then steadied himself and stared down at his body.

"My flash step didn't work?" he whispered, his frown deepening, "What's that all about?"

He tried again and was relieved to feel the more normal sensation of increased speed as he left Shiba Manor behind and headed for his apartment. The cool morning air and exercise brought the redhead into more comfortable wakefulness, and he was beginning to feel almost normal by the time he reached the apartment building and jogged up the stairs. He slowed as he reached the door and stepped inside, sighing in relief that _something_ still seemed normal.

Ignoring a sudden urge to flop down on his own bed and go back to sleep, Renji headed instead for the shower and abandoned the white yukata he was wearing.

"Oh gods, that feels soooo much better!" he whispered, letting the hot water splash onto his tanned flesh and run down his lean body.

He took his time lathering up the soap and rubbed a few places where his muscles seemed sore. His hand slowed as it passed over his round, tattooed bottom, and he suffered a sharp flicker of memory.

_Renji's breath was stolen away as Ichigo shifted, and his hand slid down between them. He felt a touch that made him stiffen reflexively, then felt the Shiba heir's hot breath on his earlobe, pleading softly with him to relax. He wasn't sure whether it was that softer, wanting tone, the look in the other man's eyes, or that he really wanted to be taken, but he relaxed his body and spread his thighs wider, flinching and holding on to Ichigo's shoulders as he worked his way inside, then stopped to catch his breath._

_"Are you okay?" he panted._

_"I'm f-fine," Renji answered, not sure at all if he really was or not, but feeling hard as a rock and anxious for release, "Go ahead."_

_The redhead flushed instantly at the heavy, desirous sound that escaped his parted lips as Ichigo moved, but his embarrassment was swiftly forgotten as pleasant friction stole away his mind and left him focused solely on the giving and taking of surprisingly intense pleasure._

A strange feeling of loneliness passed through the redhead as he lingered over the flushed skin of his awakening privates, then straightened and let the steamy water wash the foamy soap away. He remained under the hot spray, letting his mind wander aimlessly and breathing slowly, closing his eyes and sighing with contentedness that things were back to normal and he could just start putting what had happened behind him.

_As soon as we get this thing annulled, anyway. But, right now, I'm married to Shiba Ichigo._

He chuckled softly at the image of him, dressed in a formal kimono and walking meekly, a step behind Ichigo.

_Right. Like that's gonna happen! No way._

Renji was in a much better mood as he exited the shower and ran a warm towel over his tanned body, then strode to his closet and pulled out his shihakushou. He dressed quickly and was his cheerful, amiable self by the time he left his apartment and started in the direction of the sixth division.

"Good morning, Shiba fukutaichou!" a young man in a fourth division uniform said, bowing respectfully as they passed each other.

Renji paused and blinked in surprise.

"Huh?"

He looked over his shoulder, frowning as he watched the young man walk away.

"That was weird."

Renji shook his head and continued walking, then a moment later, encountered a group of female members of the twelfth division.

"Good morning, Shiba fukutaichou!" they called out cheerfully, making him stop and stare questioningly as they giggled and walked away.

"This is _really_ weird."

"Good morning, Shiba fukutaichou! Congratulations, sir!" called another young officer, then another and another.

Renji moved into flash steps, trying to ignore the continued greetings as he closed in on the sixth division headquarters and burst through the door, slamming it shut behind him.

"Shiba fukutaichou, is something wrong?" Byakuya's calm, curious voice asked, making Renji's eyes widen and a distressed breath escape him.

"What's going on with everybody?" Renji asked, only half hearing, "What the hell is _wrong_ with everyone?"

"Are you all right, Renji?" the noble asked, an edge of concern coming into his voice.

"Not really," the redhead sighed, "But it's fine. I just need to, I don't know, get out and train a little, beat the hell out of a few hollows or something and I'll be fine. Sorry I'm late, by the way, Taichou. I'll just..."

"Renji, perhaps you should sit down for a moment. I think we need to talk."

"S-sure," Renji said unsteadily, the feeling of nausea returning suddenly, "I'll go get some tea and..."

"The tea can wait."

_Oh fuck. He's really mad at me, isn't he? Why? I wasn't that late._

"L-look, I said I was sorry for being late. I won't let it happen again, Taichou, really. I guess it was just all of the excitement and stress of the party last night. I didn't mean to..."

"The party last night?" Byakuya queried, frowning in confusion.

"The coming of age thing for Ichigo," Renji reminded him, "That party."

"Renji, that party was a week ago."

"What?" the redhead asked weakly, "A week ago?"

"Yes. It was a week ago."

"You've gotta be shitting me!" Renji mused, going pale, "I just woke up. At least I think I woke up. But this can't be right. How can it have been a week? I remember it like it was just last night! What the hell happened?"

"What were you told when you woke?" Byakuya asked quietly.

"When I woke?" Renji repeated, blinking, "I wasn't told anything. No one was there. I just heard that flaky counselor guy, Hinata, outside the room and I got the hell out of there."

"You left Shiba Manor without speaking to anyone?" the noble queried, his eyes widening slightly.

"Yeah, I went out the window. I know it was a little weird, but I just didn't feel like dealing with anyone, you know? I left and went back to my apartment to shower and change, and then I came here," Renji explained, "But it was strange. People kept calling me by Ichigo's last name and yelling 'congratulations.' I didn't know our wedding was such a big deal. But don't worry. Ichigo and I will get things cleared up. We just went along with everything so that we wouldn't embarrass his family in front of everyone. After work today, I'll go find him and we'll get this thing fixed. Just, please, don't call me by Ichigo's name again or I think I really will lose my mind."

He paused at the strange look Byakuya was giving him.

"Taichou?"

"Renji, perhaps you should go and bring that tea. We really do need to talk about this."

"What's to talk about?" Renji asked, shaking his head, "It was just a mistake, okay? I'm not even noble and I wasn't supposed to drink that stuff, all right? Ikkaku swiped some. I'm going to kill him for that, by the way, and he gave it to me to try. He thought it was just a party drink. But you get it, right, Taichou? I wasn't being considered as a bride for Ichigo. That wasn't supposed to happen at all!"

"But the two of you _did_ react," Byakuya reminded him, "and strongly."

"Yeah, but..."

"You noticed, didn't you?" the noble went on, "Your friends who took the elixir probably glowed more gently, ne?"

"Yeah, and without the weird pulsing and flickering," Renji confirmed, "And that means?"

"Renji, that is the difference between two people who have romantic potential and two people who are meant to be together."

"What are you talking about?" Renji objected, exasperation in his voice, "Taichou, I just told you it was a mistake! It's not like with you and Tetsuya-san at all. Ichigo and I aren't in love with each other! So we drank some weird shit that made us glow and we went along with the wedding and consummation so we wouldn't disgrace his family in public. That doesn't make us _meant to be together_! I'm not in love with him and he's not in love with me, end of story! And as soon as I leave here tonight, I'll get it all worked out. I'm not spending the rest of my life being someone's little clan wife. I didn't go through hell getting strong and reaching bankai so that I could bow at that guy's feet all the time and have his babies. I am getting out now, while there's still time."

Byakuya caught his breath softly, a glint of comprehension touching his dark eyes for a moment.

"What time do you think you have?" he asked cautiously, "Renji, you... _do_ realize that..."

He paused, looking up as the door swung open and Ichigo entered the room with Hinata a step behind.

" _There_ you are!" Hinata called out in an exasperated voice, "What were you _thinking_ , running off like that? Are you out of your mind? Do you have any idea what...?"

"Shut up, okay?" Ichigo snapped, scowling, "Let me talk to him."

Renji's face paled and he stared at Ichigo wordlessly.

"What's going on, Renji?" the Shiba heir asked, "Why did you leave without telling anyone?"

"Ah," the redhead said, smiling sheepishly, "Sorry. I just...didn't want to deal with everything. And I was late for work. So, I just went home and took a shower and came here. Sorry if I worried you, but I'm fine. I'm really fine. I don't know why everyone's so up in arms. They've got to know it was all a mistake, right? So, do you want to go deal with this now? Get it out of the way?"

Renji felt a twinge of anxiety as Ichigo looked back at him uncertainly and struggled for words. The feeling increased dramatically at the amused look on their counselor's face.

"We are getting this thing annulled, right?" the redhead asked, an edge of tension in his voice, "That's what we agreed on, isn't it?

"Y-yeah, we did say that," Ichigo agreed, "But...that was before."

"What?" Renji chuckled, smirking, "Did you change your mind and fall in love with me or something? One time with me and it's not enough for you? Sheesh!"

"Renji..."

"No, stop," Renji said, his face taking on a completely serious expression, "Stop right there. Cause if you're going to stand there and tell me that you're not letting me out of this thing, then I'm going to take out my sword and kill you _and_ that pansy-assed freak behind you right now! Stop fucking with me, Ichigo! It's not funny anymore. Just get the hell out of here and leave me alone!"

Ichigo took a breath, considering his words carefully, as behind him, Hinata arched a mocking eyebrow and crossed his arms.

"Look," the Shiba heir went on, meeting Renji's angry eyes apologetically, "I don't...feel any different than you about this, really. And I'd like nothing more than to be able to walk out of here and forget this too."

"Then..."

"It can't happen like that," Ichigo said, his lips tightening against the words.

"Why not?" Renji asked guardedly, "It's just a walk down to the council hall and a conference with Mr. Grand Councilor, right? Just a few words and they'll agree it was all a mistake and let us out of it. I mean, it's not like there are kids involved or anything. "

He went quiet at the sound of amusement that escaped Hinata.

"Oh my," said the counselor, smirking, "This is going to be absolutely _precious_!"

"Shut up!" Ichigo hissed, "Just shut up and get out of here!"

"Oh no," Hinata chuckled, "I wouldn't miss this moment if you took out your sword and cut me in half!"

"I'm going to do worse than that if you don't just shut your mouth and let me handle this!"

"Fine, go on."

"Let you handle this?" Renji repeated, his frown deepening, "Ichigo, what's going on?"

The redhead looked from the Shiba heir's lost expression, to Hinata's more triumphant one, then found Byakuya's slightly sad and sympathetic gaze.

"Will someone just tell me what's going on here?" Renji pleaded, "This is really starting to freak me out."

Ichigo took a steadying breath and slowly let it out again, gathering his nerve.

"What's going on is that we can't just go down and 'fix this' by talking to the grand councilor or anyone else."

"What?"

"There's a reason that you passed out after the consummation and didn't wake up for a week, Renji."

Ichigo stopped, his heart pounding in his chest and his lips unable to speak the words.

"Oh?" Renji said weakly, going pale at the look on his friend's face.

"What your spellbound husband is trying to tell you, and failing miserably," Hinata said, taking over, "is that you passed out because you conceived the Shiba heir already. Sorry, little lotus blossom, there's no getting out of this now. _You_ are going to be a _mommy_!"

Renji opened his mouth, but couldn't think of a thing to say.

"Renji," Byakuya said, standing, "you should sit down."

Renji's widened eyes took in Ichigo's guilty look, Hinata's more self-satisfied one and Byakuya's look of concern, and he felt the room shift strangely underneath him.

"Renji?" Ichigo's voice said, echoing strangely in his head as the redhead's knees weakened and he crashed gracelessly to the floor.


	5. Resonance, Balance and Release!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hinata teaches Ichigo and Renji to bond.

"Ow...!" Renji groaned, "M-my head hurts."

"I'm not surprised," Hinata answered, his voice making the redhead groan again uncomfortably, "As much as you have the dramatic fainting down perfectly, my dear, your not so graceful husband needs to do a much better job of catching you when you fall."

"Will you please go away?" Renji moaned, still not daring to open his eyes, "I'm gonna puke."

"Hmmm, you had best get used to that."

"Ugh, get out!" Renji snapped, blindly throwing a pillow in the direction of the offending counselor's mocking voice.

Hinata let out a soft huff and Renji heard his footsteps retreat from the room. The redhead took a deeper breath and opened his eyes slowly, then found himself looking up at Ichigo. Next, he realized he was lying in a bed in the fourth division.

"Sorry," Ichigo apologized, "I did try to catch you, but you dropped too fast. They had to bring you here because you had a concussion."

"Is the...the...?" Renji asked unsteadily.

"Yeah, the baby's fine," the Shiba heir assured him, "You're both fine."

"I don't feel fine," the redhead complained closing his eyes for a moment and shaking his head, "What the hell is happening, Ichigo? I mean, yesterday morning, things were great. Well, they were normal anyway, but just like that I'm...married to you and...and _this_!" he exclaimed, indicating his still slim belly, "This is crazy...really insane."

"Well," Ichigo said solemnly, "I agree with you. I wasn't ready for any of this either. But now that there's a kid involved, I guess that we are going to have to find a way to make this work."

"Make it work?" Renji repeated, a sarcastic edge in his voice, "Ichigo, how's something like this going to _work_? I mean, we're not lovers. We're married because some magical brew and a bunch of old men said we should be. We didn't plan on ending up together and having a baby. And how can those stuffy people really want us to do that? Weren't they like the Kuchiki elders who looked down on Taichou for marrying a commoner? But, oh, enter the magical drink and, _poof_ , we suddenly forget that it's not okay to marry the precious, pure-blooded Shiba heir with some tattooed mongrel freak from the lower Rukon? This is nonsense, Ichigo! We've got nothing holding us together. Don't you see that?"

He paused at the contemplative look that had come into the Shiba heir's golden brown eyes.

"Ichigo?"

"I get where you're coming from and I agree that this is all really crazy. But you're wrong about something, Renji."

"Oh? What am I wrong about?" the redhead said sarcastically, "Did you suddenly fall in love with me?"

"No," Ichigo answered more softly, "It not that."

"Huh? Then, what is it? Because as I see it, we've got nothing in us that's going to make this anything but a miserable mistake."

"No, that's not right," Ichigo said with unusual calm, "We do have something, Renji."

Renji gave him a dismayed look.

"We're friends," the Shiba heir continued, "We already look out for each other, because we're friends. So, we can just keep doing that. If our kid sees that we like each other and that we're close, that will be a good thing, right? We may not have chosen to get married or to have a kid, but we can choose to make this a good thing, right?"

Renji let out a long sigh and closed his eyes.

"Great...friends, but we can't even have another relationship, because we're married. Ichigo, has it occurred to you that neither one of us will probably ever have sex again?"

Ichigo gave a soft, amused chuckle.

"Well, we've never had it with anyone but each other anyway," he laughed, "And if you want sex, then all you have to do is ask."

"WHAT?" the redhead yelled, staring, "What did you...?"

Ichigo shrugged and smiled at him, making Renji freeze and stare at him in confusion.

"Well, we're married, right?" Ichigo said pointedly, "And that means that we can't have sex with other people. But if we want to, we can have sex with each other. I didn't think it was bad. Did you?"

"W-well, no!" Renji said, blushing furiously, "How is sex gonna be a bad thing? It was fine...good...great! I mean..."

Ichigo's smile widened at the sight of his flustered spouse, and he laughed again, more softly.

"So, it's not so bad, right?" he went on, "It's better than a lot of clan marriages. A lot of them have to get married to someone they don't know at all. At least we're already friends. And we're used to taking care of each other, so whatever one of us needs, the other can provide, right?"

"Even sex?" Renji asked, smirking, "Ichigo, do you even know how nuts this all is?"

"Yeah. I'm with you there."

"Well, at least we agree on that," sighed the redhead, "But what do we do now?"

The two looked up in surprise as the door opened and Hinata returned to the room.

"What we _do_ is to begin the stabilization and maturation of the little noble cluster in that red tiger's tattooed belly!"

"Didn't I just kick that asshole out of here?" Renji asked dryly.

"What, were you out there eavesdropping?" Ichigo objected.

"Well, I _have_ been assigned to help the two of you manage through your wedding and childbirth."

"And someone thought that was a _good_ idea?" Renji mused, shaking his head, "And I think we can figure things out just fine. We took our vows and we managed to make the kid without your help!"

"Well, I did provide the lubrication that saved your..."

"WILL YOU SHUT UP!" Renji yelled, "I might not have a say about marrying Ichigo or having his kid, but if you don't shut up and get the hell out of here, I'm going to kill you, myself! Let's see how those fucking elders like _that_!"

"Oh, temper, temper, Renji, dear," Hinata sighed flippantly, "You are a fiery little ball of hormones, aren't you?"

"You...annoying son of a bitch! THAT'S IT!" Renji yelled, surging to his feet and swinging blindly at the now frowning counselor.

The redhead froze as his punch was stopped cold, inches from Hinata's lovely, disapproving face, then the counselor's palm touched his face, and Renji collapsed instantly into Ichigo's strong arms.

" _Much_ better catching that time, Ichigo-chan," Hinata observed, "Now, are you done with your little outbursts, Renji-chan, or are we in need of another corrective measure?"

"You bastard!" Ichigo exclaimed, helping Renji back into the bed, "What the hell did you do to him?"

"He was hysterical. Didn't you see him?" Hinata said blithely, "It was nothing, merely a little calming jolt to soothe the savage beast. He is fine. Now then, we have work to do."

"Whoa! No way! I'm not doing anything you say!" Ichigo shouted, "You're damned crazy, that's what you are. And don't fucking touch my husband again or I'll destroy you, you got that?"

"Oh, are _we_ having problems now too?" Hinata asked, disapprovingly.

"Look, if you're gonna do something to help, then _actually do something helpful instead of pissing us off_ , you got that?"

"Oh, I understand just fine," Hinata said, fluttering his eyelids disdainfully, "But I don't think you gentlemen have a clue. And if I walk out and leave you now, you and your little red tiger are going to be in world of pain the likes of which you have never experienced!"

"Yeah, right, you fucking maniac," Ichigo huffed dismissively, "Like you can do _more_ to us besides force us to be married, throw us in bed together while everyone parties and shove a baby into the picture."

"You might remember that I haven't actually _done_ any of that to you," Hinata reminded him, "I have only been here at your side, _attempting_ to help you manage the little important things like _how not to hurt your sexual partner_...things like that."

"Eh..." Ichigo stammered, frowning and scratching the back of his neck, "W-well, you haven't been very nice about it!"

"Oh? And how is someone supposed to be _nice_ when he is ordered to take a reiatsu monster like you and a wild animal like him and make a family!" Hinata asked indignantly, "You might ask yourself that, as well as why in the _three worlds_ anyone would want to do my job. Think about _that_ the next time you feel like baring your teeth at me!"

"Huh...so uh, why don't you just quit?" Ichigo asked, frowning, "You don't have to do this, right? You don't have to be here putting up with us. No one ordered you to do that, ne?"

Hinata gave him a withering look.

"I am _here_ and not leaving for the same reason that you and that beautifully tattooed _disaster_ are here...and no, I can't just quit...not that I haven't thought about it..."

"Oh," Ichigo said in a smaller voice, "Okay. I guess we all just have to get along then."

"Great, one blockhead finally understands," Hinata sighed, "so what do we do about _him_?"

"Maybe you'd better back off and let me handle Renji," Ichigo suggested, "Just, uh...maybe you should go back to Shiba Manor and settle in, okay?"

Hinata crossed his arms and sighed in annoyance.

"What?" Ichigo complained, "I was trying to be nice to you!"

"Well, you might want to ask me first what I was going to instruct you in next, because when your little lotus blossom wakes up again, I have a feeling that he is going to be wanting something very badly...something only his _dear husband_ can give him..."

"What? You want us to have sex again?" Ichigo cried.

" _No_ , you moron!" Hinata snapped, "I do not want you to have sex again. I don't appreciate being teased like that."

"What? You _watched us_?"

"Well, someone had to make sure you didn't kill each other the first time."

"Now I wish _I_ was the unconscious one," Ichigo mused, shaking his head.

"Getting back to the point," Hinata said brusquely, "What you need to do is to _sense_ when Renji-chan's reiatsu and the child's become unbalanced. Now, I know neither one of you has a clue about reiatsu sensing, so this will not be the easiest thing, but the only other indicator is that he will either start throwing up repeatedly or lose consciousness. Unless you want the poor thing to suffer from repeated blows to the head...not that he hasn't been exposed to _that_ already..."

"Hey!" Ichigo objected.

"Then you need to improve at both catching him when he falls and managing the balancing he will need to remain physically stable and _not_ turn into a big red, beautifully tattooed hollow we would have no choice but to destroy. Are you getting all of that, Ichigo-chan?"

"Y-yeah...b-balancing, throwing up and fainting, gotta catch him and do something to make sure he doesn't become a hollow. I've got it. But, what do I do?"

"Come, come," Hinata said, hastening to Renji's bedside, "It's probably a good thing he's unconscious. As unpleasant as he was being, you know."

"Just get on with it," Ichigo sighed, rolling his eyes.

"All right," Hinata said, stifling Ichigo's next objection with a scathing glance as he opened Renji's yukata, baring the redhead down the front and loosing his pleasant, masculine scent around them, "You know, you're blushing..."

"Shut up!"

"Place your hands here," Hinata instructed him, at the same time, stealing an appreciative glance down at the redhead's ample privates.

"Hey, we don't have to leave, um, _that_ uncovered, do we?" Ichigo complained, "Renji's gonna be pretty pissed if he wakes up."

"Oh, he may be pissed, but he will have other things on his mind, so don't worry," the counselor chuckled.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just pay attention, okay? Place your hands here, over Renji-chan's core spirit center. Just beneath it is where your little bundle of joy is percolating and brewing right now. You...can feel that little one's presence, ne?"

Ichigo paused and frowned, rubbing Renji's belly gently and starting to release a small amount of reiatsu.

"Take it easy!" Hinata exclaimed softly, placing a hand over his and lowering the amount of his reiatsu that seeped into Renji's belly, "You don't want to _drown_ the little tyke in it, do you?"

"S-sorry..." Ichigo mumbled, his heart fluttering as he began to feel the presence of a tiny little soul beneath his fingertips, "This is...it's..."

"You look pale, Ichigo-chan," Hinata observed.

"Is that supposed to happen? Will I faint like Renji did?"

"Oh, no, this isn't like that," the counselor said, his smile gentling slightly, "This is what happens when a first time father senses his baby's reiatsu for the first time."

Ichigo went silent, rubbing Renji's tattooed belly gently and marveling in the feeling of connection to that other little soul. As he stared, entranced, he didn't notice Renji's cinnamon colored eyes opening and looking up at his enchanted expression.

"Ichigo?" the redhead whispered, "What's going on?" Why are you looking at my stomach like that?"

He sucked in a surprised breath as Ichigo's hand captured his and guided it to his belly.

"Do you feel that?" Ichigo asked wonderingly.

"Do I feel what? That I had too much to eat or...? _Oh_!" Renji gasped, staring, "That's the...it's the..."

"It is your baby's reiatsu," Hinata finished for him, "Your baby is healthy and doing just fine, as are you two gentleman, though I use the term loosely."

"Shut up," Ichigo breathed absently, "This is great, isn't it, Renji?"

"It kinda tickles inside," the redhead observed, "And it feels real good with you rubbing there. Your reiatsu's warm. It's...real good..."

He felt a throbbing beginning in his loins and frowned, glancing downward.

"HEY!" he shouted, shattering the peacefulness that had descended over the room, "WHY THE FUCK AM I NAKED?"

"Take it easy, tiger," Hinata chuckled, "We're the only ones here and besides, you have nothing to worry about. I don't think you'd get any complaints if you did walk around naked and aroused like that."

"Hey!" Ichigo objected, blushing, "That's my husband you're talking about. W-wait, did you say aroused?"

"Stop that!" Renji snapped, "Stop staring at me! I'm not...I'm...I can't fucking help it, okay? Your were rubbing my belly and...!"

"What your flustered husband is trying to say is that he doesn't know why he became aroused, and it's no surprise actually."

"What do you mean?" Ichigo asked, scowling.

"The reiatsu connection formed during your bonding will, of course, strengthen the bond between the two of you, and by the time Renji-chan is balanced, the two of you will be..."

"I am not!" Ichigo shouted.

"Oh, I beg to differ," Renji said confrontationally, glaring down at the Shiba heir's nether region, "I'd say you're definitely aroused too!"

"Fuck you! I am not!"

"It's fine, gentlemen," Hinata assured them, "Just have sex after each bonding to gently release the pent up sexual frustration...or...I suppose you could take a cold shower instead..."

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!" Ichigo and Renji shouted together.

"I think my work is done here," Hinata sighed, slipping out the door and closing it behind him.

He waited, smiling as he heard muted voices in the room, then some scuffling, and finally soft, muted moans and grunts of rising pleasure.

"Oh, well done!" he congratulated himself, chuckling, "I think, though, that I am going to need a little release of my own. Their reiatsu just _oozes_ with pheromones...I wonder what that nasty little Shihoin cat-prince, Satoshi, is up to today. I may have to give him a call!"


	6. Understanding the Beast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hinata educates Ichigo on how to tame his red tiger.

"You feeling better now?" Ichigo asked, watching as Renji extricated himself from the Shiba heir's arms and rolled onto his back.

The redhead hooked his hands behind his head and laced his fingers together, looking up at the white ceiling and sighing.

"Yeah, I'm better," Renji answered in a tone that made it clear there was still plenty wrong, "physically anyway...if you don't count the fact that I have a kid inside me, I have to pee a lot, I hurt in weird places and I'm feeling like I have to throw up a lot of the time. But the bonding thing Hinata showed us seemed to help some, if that's what you mean."

"The only problem is that it made us kinda need to have sex to let off steam afterwards," Ichigo said, shaking his head.

"I thought you said it wasn't bad," Renji objected, frowning, "I thought it was actually better than 'not bad' this time. I think we're getting better at it, now that we have a little practice."

"Don't get all offended," Ichigo chuckled, following Renji's gaze up to the spotless, white ceiling, "I just said that because it seemed like you were reluctant about us having sex."

"I wasn't reluctant," Renji said reprovingly, "I just didn't realize you liked _doing that_ with me so much, okay? And it surprised me a little that I liked having that stuff done to me, you know? But I don't think it's so much about what we're doing as that we're doing it with each other."

"So, you think there's something to that 'magical brew' they gave us?" Ichigo asked, smirking.

"I don't think it was that the stuff they gave us _did_ anything to us exactly," Renji answered, his frown deepening, "I think it's more like it just indicated there was some potential."

"What about that stuff you said before, about the match and the stuff we drank lighting it?"

"Well, I guess in a way it did. Because, when we were put in the position of having to get married and have babies, we started to build on that potential. But we had a choice about getting here. I mean, we could resist and refuse to let ourselves fall in love, but given there isn't going to be anyone else ever again, it would be good if we did love each other, right?"

"Yeah," Ichigo agreed, "I suppose you're right."

"So, it makes sense to try to keep ourselves open to each other."

"So that if we start feeling like we're falling in love, we'll let it happen?" Ichigo inquired.

"Yeah, like that," Renji agreed.

"That sounds good to me," Ichigo said approvingly, "but Renji, I don't know if you're really going to be okay with everything the way it's going to be."

"What are you talking about?" Renji asked, frowning, "You mean, there's more than what's already happened?"

"Well, yeah. I was told a lot while you were unconscious, and rather than have that asshole, Hinata tell you, I think it should be me. Just, remember that I didn't make up the rules, and there are some that we can bend if we decide to."

"O-kay," Renji said uncertainly, "Why don't you just tell me what they told you?"

"All right," Ichigo agreed, sitting up and bringing Renji up with him, "Ah...the first thing is that, because you are a guy, you have a higher chance of having complications during the pregnancy."

"A... _higher chance of complications_?" Renji repeated, "What exactly does that mean, Ichigo? What's gonna happen?"

"Probably nothing worse than nausea, throwing up sometimes, food cravings and some foods making you sick, things like that."

"You mean, like a girl having a baby."

"Yeah, just...you have a higher chance of having strong reiatsu fluctuations, so you'll have to wear a limiter until the baby's born."

"A limiter," the redhead mused, paling slightly at the thought, "Well, that's not so fun, but I guess I can put up with it. It'll make work a little...harder. And training..."

"You won't be able to work at the sixth division, and your physical activity has to be monitored in case it causes your reiatsu to start spiking."

"Whoa!" Renji said, his expression pained, "What's that about? I mean, I guess I can understand no combat or heavy physical training, but no work at all? Not even paperwork? Why?"

"Um, The elders are concerned about you leaving the manor too much because it could expose you to illness and maybe danger."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Renji demanded, "Pregnant girls are always walking around all over the Seireitei, and no one tells them they need to worry about catching something? And what kind of danger? Ichigo, this is bullshit! You of all people should know that!"

"I agree with you," Ichigo said bracingly, "And remember how I said that...?"

"I don't care what you said!" Renji steamed, "I've had to get married when I wasn't in love, get fucked by a guy when I'm not gay or in the mood, get pregnant when I'm not a girl and now you want me to give up my job and even walking around? You and all of those elders of yours are out of your fucking minds!"

He surged to his feet, nearly knocking the stunned Shiba heir to the floor.

"Whoa, Renji, wait a sec!" Ichigo yelled.

"Wait for what?" the redhead shouted, "for you and your damned elders to lock me up in a tiny little room I can't leave because you're afraid I'll break a goddamned nail? I'm not doing that!"

"Hey, but...!"

"No way!" Renji snapped, covering his ears and flash stepping away, "There's no way you or any of those crazy people can lock me up and tell me what to do! We may be married, but that doesn't mean you _own_ me!"

"Renji!"

He watched in dismay as the redhead disappeared out the door and down the hallway.

"Well," said Hinata's mocking voice, " _That_ went well. I see clearly now you were the man for the job and not me."

He turned his head slightly to meet the eyes of an olive skinned, golden-eyed and black-maned young man who stood at his side, holding hands with him.

"Satoshi, my kitten, would you mind stalking Renji-chan for a bit? Just mind all of that temper he's blowing around doesn't singe that pretty fur of yours, love."

"I thought we were going to your place after this," the young Shihoin prince complained, blinking slowly and frowning unhappily.

"Sorry, I have to put in some overtime because that pretty tiger of Ichigo-chan's is being a bit rebellious and we have to rein him in. But I promise if you help me out, I'll make it worth your while," Hinata promised, smirking, "I'll give you an extra long belly rub and a few _special treats_ later. Off you go, now!"

Satoshi emitted a sound that fell somewhere between a growl and a discontented hiss and disappeared from the counselor's side.

"Now then, Ichigo-chan," Hinata went on blithely, "you and I need to come to an understanding. You, of course are the high and mighty Shiba heir, who can shake the foundations of Soul Society and easily take the rest of us in a fight, but you have no interest in being a noble prince and really? You have no talent for it either."

"Thanks for the rundown," Ichigo said dryly, "You want to tell me something I don't know already?"

"And that sexy beast of a clan wife of yours is certainly no picture of grace and propriety."

"I don't think that's news to anyone," Ichigo sighed, "You want to do something besides just sit here and state the obvious?"

"I was just summing up the problem, putting things in a nutshell, as it were, so that I can best advise you before you do something more stupid than what you just did..."

"Hey! I didn't do anything _stupid_!" the ginger-haired youth objected, "I tried to reason with him, okay? I don't think being rational and reasoning with Renji qualifies as stupid!"

"You don't?" Hinata said, arching a disapproving eyebrow, " _Really_?"

Before Ichigo could respond, he felt an odd flash of power and suddenly found himself dressed as an animal trainer and standing in a circus ring in front of a beautiful but deadly looking red tiger.

"Hey, what the hell is this? What are you doing?" Ichigo snapped, eliciting a decidedly wicked snarl from the beast in front of him, "Whoa! Uh...uh, take it easy there, big fella. Don't eat me, okay?"

He cast a withering eye on the counselor.

"Does this have a point or are you just going to make me have to bust this tiger's ass?"

" _Ichigo-chan_...Ichigo chan!" the counselor lamented, rolling his eyes and shaking his head disapprovingly, "I am _trying_ to make a point. Do stop flailing about and pay attention. Now, I think we can both agree that while Renji-chan is not quite the same as this lovely beast, there are some very powerful similarities. And not too surprisingly, the key to taming this wild beast is the same as the one that will turn your growling, snarling mate into a purring, nuzzling kitten!"

"Renji? A kitten?" Ichigo mused disbelievingly, "How the heck's _that_ gonna work?"

Hinata flashed him a charismatic smile.

"Observe," he said, clearing his throat softly and stealing the whip that had appeared with Ichigo's trainer outfit, "The first step is to know each other and to establish trust."

Hinata took a step forward, meeting the tiger's feral eyes and loosing a gentle swell of his reiatsu, which drifted between the two and made the glaring beast sniff the air gently, then look back at the counselor expectantly, "You and your little lotus blossom have already done this through the medium of nearly killing each other in battle and bonding as you worked to save Rukia-chan."

"Okay, yeah. So, Renji and I know each other pretty well and we trust each other. We're doing something right, ne?"

"You have a _beginning_ ," Hinata corrected him, snapping the whip in his hand and making the Shiba heir flinch and scowl.

"Are you going to make a point pretty soon? I get it that Renji and I know each other. Get on with it!" Ichigo snapped impatiently.

"Knowing each other is just the first step, as I told you," Hinata went on, ignoring his outburst, "The next step is understanding each other's needs. Take this charming killer, here, for example. Let's say, I _need_ him to roll over onto his back so that I can impress a large crowd of gawking people."

"You just give him a signal, right?" Ichigo concluded, "You give him the right signal and he does what you want."

" _Amateur_!" the counselor scoffed, giving the tiger a signal with his hand and looking back at Ichigo meaningfully as the beast growled and glared at them, "You see, I can stand here all day making gestures he knows, but it takes something more to entice him to obey me."

"Is this how you _trained_ that Shihoin prince?" Ichigo asked dryly.

"Of course," Hinata purred, moving closer to the tiger and freeing more of his reiatsu to curl around the tiger, "I approached Satoshi the same way one approaches this very large and lovely wild thing, Ichigo-chan. First, you must show your respect and admiration for him and you must understand _his needs_!"

"But wait, this is how you get him to do what you want? Really?" the Shiba heir mused, looking confused as the tiger sniffed Hinata's scent on the air and tilted his head slightly.

"Look at his body language," Hinata said, more quietly, "Look at his eyes. What do they tell you, Ichigo-chan?"

"Uh, that he'll fucking eat me if I get too close to him?"

"Sort of," the counselor said, nodding, "He is telling me that he _needs_ to be respected because he could hurt me. But he is telling me other things too. The fact that he looks at me and waits, tells me he is waiting for something from me. And what does a big, furry beast like this need to make him take on what is, for felines, the most vulnerable pose? Lying on his back, with his belly exposed?"

"Well, I guess he needs to know that you aren't going to do anything bad to him."

" _Exactly_ ," Hinata said approvingly, moving closer to the tiger and making a soft, purring sound, then giving the beast the same signal he had before, "But I am a human soul. I look different and speak a different language..."

"So, you have to understand him and speak his language. I get it," Ichigo said, more patiently, "But how is all of this going to help me to get Renji to calm down and listen to reason?"

"Well, it just got you to calm down, stop yelling at me and listen, ne?" Hinata pointed out, smiling as the tiger made a chuffing sound and rolled onto his back playfully, "And you see, I have successfully communicated to this charming and deadly creature that obeying me will _get his needs met_. It's really not that hard, Ichigo-chan."

"Huh," Ichigo mused, watching as the counselor scratched the big cat under the chin, then rewarded him with a large piece of raw meat.

Another soft flash of reiatsu left the two standing back in the hospital room in the fourth division.

"So, do you understand now?" Hinata inquired.

"Yeah, I think so," Ichigo said, nodding, "I need to think of a way to show Renji that I understand where he's coming from and what he needs, then when he feels like his needs are met, he'll probably listen better and he'll be more willing to go along with me."

"And what do you think that very proud and fierce young man needs right now?"

Ichigo sighed and looked down at the floor.

"He needs to not be forced to marry me and..."

"No," Hinata said firmly, "That's not it. Try again."

Ichigo sighed and thought more deeply, remembering the tiger from Hinata's illusion and picturing Renji in his mind.

"He needs to feel like he still has choices, like they're not all being made for him. He needs to feel like the things about himself that he's proud of are going to matter to me too."

"Very good. You aren't completely hopeless, I think," Hinata said, squeezing the distracted Shiba heir's hand.

"He needs to know I'm his friend and that we're in this together," Ichigo went on, forgetting that the counselor was still there, "And he needs to still feel like a guy, even though he's having to do things that aren't so guy-like."

"I think you have this," Hinata said, nudging him in the direction of the door.

"He needs to know that I care about him, that I like him and think he's sexy...and that..."

"You've got it! Go on!" Hinata sighed, his eyelids fluttering, "Go and charm the pants off of him!"

He chuckled softly as the Shiba heir disappeared into the distance, still talking to himself, then shook his head and sensed the direction of the Shihoin prince and flash stepped away, wearing a seductive smile.

XXXXXXXXXX

Renji sat silently in a nearby park, his back against a pretty, blooming plum tree and his troubled eyes focused on the sky.

_What am I going to do? They've got me cornered. I can't do anything. I don't feel like anything's under my control anymore. And all of the things that I suffered and fought for, the strength that I paid for with my own blood is useless. I don't know what to do._

_No one ever told me what to do. Me and Rukia just decided how we needed things and we did what we had to. We needed a place to live, so we fixed up that abandoned shack. We needed food and water, so we grew what we could in the fields and we stole the rest. It wasn't an easy life. In fact, it was so bad that all we could think of was getting strong so we could get out of there. We needed a better life, so we got strong and won that for ourselves._

_Being in a noble home used to be something we'd dream about. When we had nothing and we were hungry and cold, we'd think of the warm beds and good food, taking hot baths and not having to work so hard. So, there are some good things about being married to a noble._

_No, Ichigo's not really like a noble. He's more like me, just, he had a family already and didn't have to build one from scratch like me and Rukia. Still, he probably feels pretty trapped too. Sometimes, I wonder if he's lonely. I mean, he still has his dad and his sisters, plus that crazy Kukaku and that dopey guy with the pigs...Ganju. I guess he's not hurting for company over there._

_But, sometimes he looks sad._

Renji swallowed hard and tears came to his eyes. He made a sound of frustration and rubbed his hands over his face.

 _Stupid hormones,_ he mused, scowling, _Just something else that I can't control._

When he pulled his hands away from his eyes, he spotted the Shiba heir standing quietly in front of him, wearing a pensive expression.

"I don't suppose you want to talk to me," Ichigo said quietly, "I was kind of a jerk before. Sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Renji said, turning his head away and brushing away the last of the tears, "You were just telling me what they expect. You didn't make the rules."

"Yeah well, you didn't need someone to be going off at the mouth about how you're going to live your life. Not one of those elders ever gave a damn about what you said or did before. They didn't take care of you growing up or ever give you anything. They've got no right to suddenly act like they own you, ne?"

Renji's head turned and his red-brown eyes fastened on Ichigo, reminding the Shiba heir instantly of the beautiful eyes of the red tiger that Hinata had conjured to instruct him.

_I've got his attention._

_He trusts me._

_He's receptive now._

"What do you want, Ichigo? Cause I know you want something. Just..."

"Yeah," Ichigo admitted, "I do want something."

He smiled as Renji's body stiffened rebelliously in expectation.

"I really pissed off my friend and I want to fix things."

"Yeah?" the redhead said, an edge of challenge in his voice, "How? What can you do? You can't un-marry me and you can't take back making this kid or change all of the rules of the clan, can you?"

_He's proud._

_He needs to know I admire him because he's strong and beautiful._

"No," Ichigo said evenly, "I can't do those things. The shit's really deep around us. And it's going to get deeper. I just...want you to know that I'm in it with you and it matters to me to keep both of our heads above water. Because, I can deal with pissing off the elders to the point where they want to write me off, but your friendship really matters to me. I like you the way you are. I don't want you to change for anyone. And if that means that you need to run away and refuse to live with me, then you should do that. I would rather have you do that than to force yourself to do what they want and turn into some sort of submissive little clan wife. That's not the person I know you are. So, if you want to leave me, Renji, I'll just tell them to leave you alone."

"What about...?"

"It doesn't matter," Ichigo said stubbornly, "I told you. I like you the way you are...tough, proud and strong. You worked hard to earn that fukutaichou's badge you wear. No one should take that away from you. So, go if you want. I'll take care of things."

"You can't do that," Renji sighed dismissively.

He rubbed his hands over his face and sighed more deeply.

"And besides," he went on, looking up at Ichigo and managing a grim smirk, "What kind of friend would I be if I ran away and left my buddy to deal with all of the shit by himself? How _tough_ is that? How much _strength_ would it show I had? And how could I hold my head up and feel _proud_ if I abandoned you?"

"Renji, you don't have to do this," Ichigo said, shaking his head, "I can..."

"Shut up, okay? You're not going to convince me of anything."

"No," Ichigo chuckled, shaking his head, "Probably not."

The two went quiet for a moment and it occurred to Ichigo suddenly how looking at Renji sitting under the falling plum blossoms like that gave him a pleasant, fluttery feeling inside.

"Do you want to go back to your place for a while?" Ichigo asked finally.

"Why?"

"You still look kind of tired. I could rub your belly a little and do that reiatsu balancing Hinata showed us."

Renji's smirk turned more playful and Ichigo flashed back to the moment when the great tiger had rolled over and flopped onto his back.

"Fuck you, you just want to have sex with me again, don't you, so that you can soften me up and get me to go home with you, right?" the redhead accused him jokingly.

Ichigo shrugged.

"I don't mind at all if we end up having sex, and if you want to sleep over at your place, we can. I just feel like hanging out with you, if that's okay. Is it okay with you?"

Renji took a deeper breath, tilting his head and giving Ichigo a knowing look.

"Fine, but you know I'm only doing this for the belly rub and sex."

"Yeah?" Ichigo said, crossing his arms and glaring softly, "Well, _I'm_ only doing it because I want to see all of your tattoos again."

"Hmm," the redhead huffed, " _All of them_?"

"Yeah," Ichigo said, his eyes narrowing meaningfully, "All of them."


	7. Stripes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renji makes a shocking discovery...

"Oh...O-oh! Ah...!" Hinata moaned languidly, moving his hips carefully, so as not to inadvertently choke the lovely, olive-skinned man who knelt between his parted, lily-white thighs, sucking his flushed and swollen cock hungrily, "A-hah! S-slow own, kitten, or you'll have me swooning!"

The Shihoin prince only smirked as he continued to lick and suck his partner’s engorged member, his slitted eyes watching closely as his pretty, blonde lover thrashed and clenched at the sheets.

"Oh! What are you doing, you n-nasty little alley cat, you?" Hinata panted feverishly, "There'll be no milk for you tonight when you go h-home if they learn you've been misbe...having like this! _O-OH_!

"But you won't let me starve, ne?" Satoshi purred, pausing for a moment, then bringing his lover to a mind-numbing climax with a long, slow finishing lick.

"Y-you b-b-beast!" Hinata sighed breathlessly, sinking contentedly into the lovely swell of afterglow and smiling down at his lover as Satoshi eagerly plundered his yielded essences, " _You_ need to be tied up and taught a lesson. You've gotten a bit too feisty for your fur, my dear. But you did make me very, _very_ contented, so I feel I _must_ return the favor."

He turned suddenly, flipping the younger man easily onto his back, then meeting him for a long, penetrating kiss before beginning a slow crawl down Satoshi's slim, sinfully attractive body. The Shihoin prince emitted sweet, erotic sighs and moans of pleasure as his blonde lover worked his way slowly downward, one hand rubbing the younger man's belly gently and his mouth treasuring a flushed and very erect nipple.

The two groaned as Hinata's phone began to ring.

" _Always_ when I'm in the middle of something!" the elder man sighed, rolling his eyes.

He rolled over, eliciting a soft hiss from the man in his bed.

"Oh..." Hinata said, looking perplexed, "It's _him_. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. Sorry, love, _I_ have to go back to work. _But_ , let me just leave you with a happy thought, ne?"

He dove onto his frowning lover, preparing him swiftly and plunging into his barely prepared body, dragging an impassioned, wanton howl from the Shihoin prince as he was suddenly and enthusiastically penetrated. Satoshi's slender, tanned hands and sharp fingernails clawed at the bedding as the other man's heavy, deep thrusts brought him swiftly to the edges of bliss.

"That better, my love?" Hinata panted, bringing the two off together with a groan of delight.

Satoshi answered with a steamy barrage of hard, open-mouthed kisses, before falling into a deliciously sated stupor, his large, feline eyes blinking sleepily.

"Oh, I do wish we had time for a cuddle," Hinata lamented, earning a warm chuckle from his handsome mate, "Save me a dance, will you, kitten?"

"I'll be waiting," Satoshi promised, curling around a pillow and closing his eyes as Hinata headed reluctantly for the shower.

_I really want to hurt that Shiba brat and his snippy little tiger for interrupting my fun and dragging me out of bed..._

Huffing with indignation, he washed himself thoroughly, soothed his slender body with softly scented oils, then dressed and left the sleeping Shihoin prince with a gentle, promising kiss.

"I'll be back. Hopefully, those idiots won't keep me away from you for too long. If they do, I'll think of a _million_ painful ways to make them pay..."

XXXXXXXXXX

"Did you reach him yet?" Renji asked in a panicked voice, the sound floating through the closed bathroom door.

"Yeah, I called him. He's on his way," Ichigo assured his distressed husband, "Will you come out here now and tell me why we need Hinata? You've never asked for his help before, ne? It seemed pretty much like you'd rather die than to ask for him to help us."

"Yeah, well that was before!" Renji insisted, "This is really bad!"

"What's really bad? Renji, come on out here and just let me see! It can't be as bad as all that!"

"Says you! You've got no idea!" the desperate redhead snapped.

"I would if you'd come out!" Ichigo yelled back, "Come out of there, damnit!"

"NO! I'm not moving until..."

The rest of Renji's answer was drowned out as the apartment doorbell rang and Ichigo gave a discontented sigh and moved to the answering device.

"Is that you, Hinata?" he asked through the speaker.

"The one and only," the counselor replied dryly, "You have no idea what a..."

"All right, whatever. Just come up here, will you? Something's wrong with Renji and he won't talk to me."

He waited as the counselor passed through the apartment lobby and took the elevator up to Renji's floor. Shuddering slightly at the unpleasant scent in the hallway, he hastened to the redhead's apartment door and knocked lightly. The door opened immediately and Hinata encountered a flushed and frustrated looking Shiba heir.

"Thanks for coming so quickly," Ichigo said, grimacing as the sound of retching reached them.

Hinata's expression instantly became somewhat more sympathetic.

"Ah...the morning sickness set in, ne?" he said sympathetically, "Well, a sprig of fresh peppermint and a swallow of chilled lemon water would help freshen him up a bit."

"Maybe, but that's not all," Ichigo sighed, "Something else is wrong, but Renji won't let me into the bathroom to see. I've heard him throw up a few times and I think I heard him crying a little. I'm worried..."

"Leave him to me," Hinata said, patting the Shiba heir on the shoulder and moving to the bathroom door.

He tapped politely on the door.

"Who is it?" Renji's weary voice asked.

"It's the love doctor, little lotus blossom. Ichigo-chan said you needed some help."

Ichigo and Hinata exchanged bemused glances at the long pause that followed.

"All right," Renji said finally, "Come in. Just you, for right now. I...don't want Ichigo to see me like this."

"Very well," Hinata said, shooing Ichigo away from the door, "It's just me coming in."

He waited until he heard the door unlock, then slipped inside and closed the door behind him. He gazed down sympathetically at where Renji sat on the floor, dressed in his nightclothes and against the opened toilet.

"Oh my, you are an absolute wreck, aren't you?" the counselor said, shaking his head.

He pulled a sprig of peppermint out of his pocket and handed it to the redhead, then drew him a cup of water to cleanse his mouth.

"How did you know to bring the peppermint?" Renji asked in a dull, tired tone.

"Instinct and a bit of deduction, love," Hinata answered, smirking, "You are pregnant and asking for the help of someone you...how shall I put it?...someone you _don't really appreciate_. Something must be _dreadfully wrong_ if you are turning to me!"

"It isn't just morning sickness," Renji said, dragging himself slowly to his feet, "It's worse than that, and I don't know what to do about it. I don't know if there's anything anyone can do about it, but..."

He took a steadying breath and opened his yukata, presenting his bared body to the counselor.

Hinata sucked in a surprised breath and bit his lip gently.

"Oh. I see," he said in a befuddled tone, "W-well...um...if you need help getting it to full staff..."

"WHAT?" Renji howled, "IT'S NOT THAT, YOU PERVERTED FREAK! _LOOK_ AT ME!"

Hinata's jaw dropped and he stared wordlessly at the steamed redhead.

"I...?"

"MY TATTOOS!" Renji yelled, "CAN'T YOU FUCKING SEE THAT THEY'RE GONE?"

"Oh!" Hinata said, swallowing hard and blinking, "Oh my, yes. So sorry, Renji-chan, I was distracted by that _manly_ equipment of yours and was momentarily stunned."

"Yeah, well _that_ was supposed to be tattooed too!" Renji cried desperately, "At least, it was before!"

"It was?" Hinata asked, looking slightly woozy, "Oh, right, it was, wasn't it? Ahem, I...ah...very well, um, Renji dear, why don't you close your yukata and we'll talk about this. I think we can let Ichigo-chan in on the conversation, as I doubt he missed hearing when you yelled before."

"Oh, right," the redhead said, deflating as he hastily tied his yukata closed, "You can come in now, Ichigo."

The door opened and the Shiba heir stepped into the bathroom.

"You look okay to me," Ichigo said, looking confused, "But, did you say something about your tattoos?"

"Yeah!" Renji half sobbed, his eyes filling with unbidden tears, "They're gone, Ichigo!"

"What? Gone?" What do you mean, they're gone?"

"Just what he said," Hinata said, shaking his head sadly, "Show him, Renji-chan."

"You don't have to. I get it," Ichigo said quickly, glaring at the counselor, "But, how did that happen?"

"Well, I'm not sure," admitted Hinata, "Is there something special about these markings? When did you have them...?"

"I didn't have them put on me," Renji said, sniffing and wiping his leaking eyes, "My zanpakutou puts them on me. Ahm, every...every t-time I get stronger, he puts more of them on me."

"Oh, I see. So these are markings of your power. That makes more sense."

"Are they...? They're gonna come back, r-right?" Renji asked anxiously, wiping his eyes as more tears escaped, "They're not gone for g-good, right?"

"Oh, they should return after the baby is born."

"After the baby is born!" Renji cried, his eyes leaking fresh tears, "That long? B-but...!"

Hinata turned a dark eye on Ichigo for a moment, then the Shiba heir made a sound of realization and spoke up.

"Hey, it's okay! Don't be so glum about it," he said, moving forward and slipping an arm around his husband, "They're gonna come back soon."

"B-but you were just all over me, saying how sexy they are!" Renji sobbed in a very un-Renji-like manner, "We just had really great sex because of them and now..."

"Stop it, all right?" Ichigo said soothingly, embracing the distressed redhead and rubbing his back gently, "I don't just think you're tattoos are sexy. They're sexy because they're a part of you. I don't care if they never come back because you still look sexy to me. I love you, Renji. I'm not gonna stop loving you because of you losing your stripes for a while."

Renji swallowed hard, then blinked and stared in shock.

"What?" Ichigo asked, ""Did I say something wrong?"

"You said you love me," Renji said, disbelievingly, "Are you shitting me?"

"Wh-what? No!" Ichigo insisted, "I was just telling you how I feel. And I feel like I love you. I don't want you to be sad. You look great, with or without tattoos. I'm gonna feel the same way about you either way. Is that a problem?"

"Oh, nicely done!" Hinata said under his breath, smirking as the redhead sank into Ichigo's arms and started kissing him amorously.

He watched for a moment, then backed out of the bathroom and headed for the apartment door.

"Problem solved," he sighed, reaching for the door handle.

He paused, frowning as the reiatsu in the apartment suddenly began to skyrocket and the room shook warningly.

"Oh, this is _not_ good at all!" he exclaimed, turning back as Renji staggered out of the bathroom, with Ichigo close behind.

Hinata stared disbelievingly as harsh, red light swelled around the redhead and the room shook harder. He made a sound of dismay as the limiter on Renji's wrist suddenly snapped.

"Hinata!" Ichigo cried, "What do we do? Is he out of balance? Do I just infuse him like before?"

"I'm afraid that's not going to work," Hinata said, ducking out of the way as a large piece of furniture narrowly missed falling on him, "It seems that the shock of losing his stripes has sent our tiger into a rather nasty power flare."

"Well, what do we do?" Ichigo yelped, backing away as Renji's body blazed more brightly and more furniture fell over and crashed to the floor.

"Oh dear, this is going to get _really_ ugly," Hinata complained, moving close to the redhead and laying his hands on Renji's glowing abdomen.

"Is the baby okay?" Renji asked worriedly.

"Is Renji going to be all right?" Ichigo demanded.

"Everything will be fine," Hinata said, stiffening his jaw, "Just...Ichigo, you should really leave for a moment."

"What? I'm not going anywhere! What are you talking about? It's not like he's going to explode, r...?"

Ichigo broke off, staring in surprise as the room rumbled and errant reiatsu exploded outward from Renji's falling body. He had a flash image of Hinata with his head lowered and his own golden reiatsu wrapping around the howling redhead protectively as all three men were thrown to the floor. Around them, the walls creaked dangerously and the windows exploded outward.

"RENJI!" Ichigo screamed dragging himself to his hands and knees and crawling quickly through the debris to where the counselor laid partly on top of the Shiba heir's motionless husband, "Renji!"

He turned Hinata onto his back and noted immediately that, although he appeared to be battered and unconscious, he was still breathing. Turning his attention to Renji, he found the redhead starting to sit up and coughing uncomfortably.

"Renji, are you all right?" he asked worriedly.

"Y-yeah," Renji coughed, "It...it seems like he deflected the blast so that it didn't hurt me or the baby. Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's just out cold," Ichigo assured him, "He looks all right otherwise."

"Whoa!" said a male voice from the doorway, "What in kami's name happened here?"

"Ah...Satoshi," panted Renji, "I didn't know you came with him."

"I didn't," said the Shihoin prince, moving to the fallen counselor's side and leaning over him to examine him, "I felt his reiatsu decline and came to find out what happened."

"That fast?" Renji mused.

"Well, he is a Shihoin," chuckled Ichigo.

He turned a sympathetic eye on the concerned looking prince.

"Is he okay?"

"He's beat up a little, but I'll take care of him," Satoshi said, accepting a damp washcloth from Renji and gently washing his lover's smudged face, "He'd be pissed to know anyone saw him all filthy like this," Satoshi laughed softly, an edge of worry still in his voice, "That was a pretty big chance he took to protect you, though."

"Huh?" Renji mused.

"He diverted the power that was escaping your body so that it didn't hurt you or the baby, but it hit just about everything else, including him. He must really like you two."

"Wow," Ichigo said, more softly, moving closer to Renji and slipping an arm around him, "Judging by that, you'd think Renji and the baby could have really been hurt by that, if he hadn't protected them."

"He could have been blown to bits by his own power," the prince corrected him.

"What? Really?" Renji said in a scared tone, "C-could this happen again?"

"If you don't keep your limiter on."

"The limiter broke," Ichigo remembered.

"Then, get a stronger one," Satoshi said sternly, lifting his unconscious lover into his arms, "If you two are all right, I'm going to take Hinata to the fourth division to get checked out."

"We'll be fine, thanks," Renji said gratefully, leaning against Ichigo as they made their way to the apartment door and found the building manager and several residents in the tattered hallway.

"What was that?" the manager demanded, "What happened in there?"

"Don't worry about it," Ichigo said, helping Renji past the gawking neighbors, "My family will pay for any repairs."

"Oh! It's you, Shiba-sama!" exclaimed the manager, backing away and bowing, "So sorry, sir! It's no problem. We appreciate you helping out."

"Man," Renji sighed as Ichigo lifted him off his feet and carried him back in the direction of Shiba Manor, "That's the nicest I've ever seen him be to anyone! I guess money talks."

"Yeah, whatever," Ichigo chuckled, "I'm just glad no one was hurt. Kinda took your mind off your missing tattoos, ne?"

"There are better ways to take my mind off things, stupid!" the redhead chided him.

"Hey, I wasn't the one who went into a tizzy and almost blew us all up. That was all you!"

"I said shut up!" Renji snapped, struggling out of his husband's arms.

"Aww, don't get mad," Ichigo said, slipping an arm around the flustered redhead and stealing a kiss, "Everything's going to be okay now. Let's go home, all right?"

"All right," Renji agreed, "but we'll have to stop at the sixth so I can take a leak, okay?"

"Just don't blow that up too," Ichigo joked.

"Very funny, smartass!" Renji snapped, turning towards the sixth division and stomping towards it as Ichigo chuckled and shook his head, then followed.


	8. One To Watch Over Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ichigo and Renji grow closer, but a threat to their happiness looms.

"You planning to wake up sometime soon, Renji?" Ichigo's calm, soothing voice asked, penetrating the heavy sleep the redhead had fallen into upon reaching Shiba Manor, "There's food here for you, and you really need to eat something. That reiatsu tirade of yours drained you."

"Shut up," Renji growled sleepily, "I'm not hungry. I'm tired, so leave me the hell alone, Kurosaki!"

He blinked in surprise at himself for having forgotten, even momentarily.

"I mean...Shiba," he corrected himself.

Ichigo smiled amiably.

"Don't worry about it," he chuckled, "To me, it seems like just yesterday, you and Byakuya showed up outta nowhere and tried to kill me while you were taking Rukia away. It's hard to believe we've been through two wars since then."

"Yeah," Renji agreed, yawning, "Well, I'm glad all of that shit is over. If I never hear the fucking Seireitei alarms go off again, I'll die a happy man."

"Me too," Ichigo sighed, sliding onto the bed and positioning himself behind the still groggy redhead.

His breath caught for a moment as Renji gave a little sigh and sank deeper into his embrace. The Shiba heir began the infusion, but found himself inexplicably distracted by everything about the man he was holding in his arms, from the mess of carelessly tumbled red hair and a touch of warm cinnamon colored eyes to the partially opened yukata that teased him with glimpses of Renji's handsomely tanned thighs and barely covered the emerging erection their bonding was giving him. And instead of complaining about feeling manipulated at the end of the stabilization when their erotic urges overcame them, he sought the Shiba heir's arms eagerly, crawling on top of Ichigo and biting at his lover's lips enthusiastically as Ichigo's fingers swiftly prepared him. He wore a blissful expression as their bodies were joined and looked more beautiful by the moment to his entranced husband as he surrendered easily to the pleasure Ichigo offered him.

 _Gods, he's amazing!_ Ichigo mused inwardly, watching with narrowed eyes as the redhead writhed and swayed, _Like his zanpakutou in bankai..._

He would have clenched at the bedding, but Renji's seeking fingers found his and laced together with them as the redhead coaxed him into a wickedly wonderful barrage of finishing thrusts. He felt Renji start to collapse and overthrew him, tossing him down on his back and following the meandering trails of dark lines all over his panting body until both dropped off into a deep, restorative sleep. When Renji woke, Ichigo had gone, but a note waited at his bedside with a freshly refilled tray of food.

_You have to be hungry by now, so eat, okay? I had to go listen to a bunch of boring old men complain about everything and talk about shit that I don't know why they care about it. You've got the better deal, so enjoy it. Oh, and by the way, Byakuya's having Tetsuya stop by to look in on you and see if he can help you out in any way. Do you know the guy's already pregnant again? I guess they want a big family. Don't give him too much crap. Tetsuya's a nice guy and Byakuya doesn't like anyone giving him a hard time, so behave yourself._

"Behave myself," Renji repeated, rolling his eyes, " _You_ behave yourself, asshole. I'm not gonna give Tetsuya a hard time anyway. He's a good guy, not annoying and bossy like..."

"Renji-san?"

The redhead blinked and looked up as Tetsuya entered the room, followed by two dark haired, youthful attendants. One stepped forward and laid fresh tea at Renji's bedside, while the second remained quietly stationed at Tetsuya's side.

"Thanks, uh...?"

"I am Shiba Seiji," the young man offered, "I have been made your personal attendant, Renji-sama."

"Hey, could you not call me that?" Renji complained, "Just call me Renji, all right? The other sounds weird."

"Of course, Renji," the attendant said, bowing, "Just be aware that in public, I must use your formal title."

"Okay, whatever. But it still sounds weird."

Tetsuya smiled and glanced at his own attendant.

"Koji, why don't you and Seiji go down to the fields and look for some fresh strawberries? I think I saw some on the way inside. And Chiyoko-san said that we were welcome to them."

"Yes, of course, sir," Koji answered, bowing and exiting the room alongside Seiji.

"There," Tetsuya said amiably, "You'll probably be more relaxed if it's just the two of us, ne?"

"Just as long as one of the two isn't named Hinata, I'm good," Renji chuckled, taking on a more friendly tone as he relaxed.

"He isn't so bad," Tetsuya offered, shaking his head slightly, "if a bit... _unconventional_."

"Yeah, he's all right. I hope he's feeling better. He got kinda banged up when my reiatsu went haywire and blew up my apartment."

"Yes, we heard about the excitement, and Byakuya-sama and I visited him in the fourth division. He is doing fine, and Shihoin Satoshi is taking good care of him."

"I'll bet he is," Renji snickered around a mouthful of chicken and rice, "Hey, you want some of this? There's way too much for just me. I heard you're already eating for two again. Congratulations."

"Thank you, on both counts," Tetsuya said affably, "but I had lunch with Byakuya-sama before coming over, and we stopped at an ice cream shop on the way over, as I tend to crave icy sweets, whether or not I am with child."

"Icy sweets, huh?" Renji mused.

"Do you know yet what you crave?" Tetsuya asked, "I am sure that if you inform Seiji, he will, of course, make sure plenty is on hand."

"Well, I do love Taiyaki, but I don't think that's snooty enough for a noble manor, ne?"

"I don't think our bodies mind whether what we want is proper," Tetsuya laughed, "And you should probably enjoy the times when allowances are made for you, because as a clan wife, it doesn't happen so often."

"Yeah, I noticed," Renji sighed, sobering, "but it's not so bad, right? I mean, yeah, they kinda forced us to get married and make a baby, but things will settle down now, won't they? Rukia lives at Kuchiki Manor and she manages."

"She is a family member, not a clan wife," Tetsuya explained, "It is easier for her to fit in seamlessly. But you are lucky that the Shiba clan is less stuffy than ours."

"Better not let your elders hear you say that," Renji chuckled, attacking his meal more eagerly.

"Oh, I think they know," Tetsuya mused, "I believe they pride themselves on it, actually."

"Do they let you get away with saying shit like that because you're pregnant?" laughed the redhead.

"They would never hear me say it," Tetsuya said firmly, "I may have been brought up a complete savage in the noble prison that held me, but no one would know me for a prisoner now, ne?"

Renji paused and gazed up at Tetsuya quietly for a moment, then smiled.

"So, the Shiba elders figured that if anyone could help settle me down that it was a 'former savage' like you, ne? Hinata's not enough?"

"Hinata is in a hospital bed, being spoiled to within an inch of his life by his very capable younger lover. I don't think he is in a rush to leave."

"So, they thought you'd have better luck, dealing with me. Is that it?"

"No one forced me to come here and I am on no one's payroll, I assure you," Tetsuya assured him in an amused tone, "I really do want to be of assistance, of whatever kind you need to feel more comfortable."

"Not to _fit in_?"

"Your comfort is more of a concern to both Byakuya-sama and me."

"Well, things are better for the moment," Renji assured him, "But your fleabag horse would probably stand a better chance of keeping it that way than me. I just seem to run into something new and annoying to trip me up at every turn. I feel like I can't breathe sometimes because I'll do it wrong and piss someone off or embarrass Ichigo. And I don't want to do that to the guy. I'm really starting to love him."

Renji paused, blushing at the admission. Tetsuya smiled and nodded approvingly.

"Then, if there is love between you, you are, as they say, halfway there."

"What's the other half? Me letting myself be hypnotized to say and do the right things all the time?"

"I think it would be more useful to gain a sense of _when_ to simply accept something and when to stand up for yourself...you know, choosing your battles?" Tetsuya suggested.

"You mean, like that time your bastard cousin made that comment and you had ol' fleabag douse him with muddy water from that puddle?" Renji laughed.

"It was _an accident_ , of course, and I did apologize for my mount's clumsiness at once," Tetsuya said, smirking, "The important thing is to know there is a time and place for selective disobedience, just like there is a time for quiet compliance. It is tricky learning the difference, because every clan is different. Be patient with yourself, and learn first, who your allies are. Those are the ones who will back you up when you need it, Renji-san. Know also who works against you, and keep them under a watchful eye."

"That's good advice," Renji said, sighing and leaning back against his pillow, "Thanks."

"Would you like to go for a walk, Renji-san?" Tetsuya offered, "You have been pent up inside quite a lot lately."

"Oh, well, I've been sick to my stomach a lot, and feeling dizzy," Renji remembered.

"But now that you are settling into your new reality, you can begin to go out more and enjoy some of the things you did before."

"You mean, the things I did before I became the 'Shiba clan wife?' I don't think so," Renji sighed.

"Why not?"

"Well," Renji replied, a downcast look taking over his face, "the last time I went outside and started walking around, people kept calling me 'Shiba fukutaichou,' I was told that I can't work and I was scolded for leaving home without an escort or permission or something."

"I think that the people who called you as they did were trying to be polite, calling you by your married name. They didn't understand that it was forced on you, and that you prefer your own name."

"Hey, I know that it isn't a noble name and it doesn't mean anything grand, but it's mine."

He paused, highly aware at the moment that Tetsuya was carefully not talking and was only looking at him silently with a calm, inquisitive expression.

"But...I guess I can see how they felt," he went on, "because before I was roped and hog-tied into joining this clan, I would've done the same thing."

Tetsuya nodded.

"I don't know how many well meaning people have done likewise to the endless arranged couples over the years, but it is a long list, to be sure," the blue-eyed noble sighed, "I know it doesn't help your situation much, but being aware of others' motives can be important."

He glanced out the window, his eyes focusing on the two attendants, who were busily picking strawberries and stealing frequent kisses as they worked alongside each other.

"Hey, did you know those two were so friendly with each other?" Renji chuckled.

"Koji and I are very close friends," Tetsuya said affectionately, "In fact, he has been my attendant since I was a young savage brought into Kuchiki Manor. Now, no one remembers the savage I was. They know me as the honorable and powerful protector and wife of the Kuchiki clan leader. Koji knows me better than any of those old fools ever will."

"So, you're saying?"

"Ichigo asked Byakuya-sama and me who we thought would make the best attendant for you. He knows that both my husband and I have never known any but our current, trusted attendants, and he wanted that for you, Renji-san."

"H-he did?" Renji asked, feeling a lump in his throat and a warning burning in his eyes, "He actually thought about it that much? Something like that? Really?"

"He did," Tetsuya confirmed, "Ichigo has not been a clan heir for long, but he is wise enough to trust the likes of Byakuya-sama to assist him as he settles into his new role. Seiji is capable of helping you settle in as well. Like my Koji, he is youthful and somewhat in awe of you. He wants very much to please you, but he knows some of the pitfalls you will encounter. If you place yourself in his confidence, then the two of you will grow into your roles here. And you will always have someone who is 'in the woodwork.' He will watch out for you, warn you of threats or of people who work against you. He will make himself invaluable to you. You only need to take the first step. He will not do so. He is waiting to see how you react to him."

"He is huh?" Renji mused, looking down at the two and smiling, "Then, I guess I'd better make a good impression."

"You will make the best impression by being yourself with him," Tetsuya suggested.

"What? Nobody here wants that," Renji said, frowning, "Why would you say that?"

"Because Seiji will know when you are acting and when you are being more at ease. If you are at ease with him, if you trust him, then he will open up to you as well."

"Is that what happened with you and Koji?" Renji asked, looking amused.

"The first night at Kuchiki Manor, my powers went out of control, froze up half of my bedroom and badly injured Koji by mistake," Tetsuya confessed, lowering his eyes.

"Shit..."

"I hated myself for hurting him, even though it was an accident and I refused to be separated from him. I expected him to hate and fear me after, but he never showed any sign of that. He told me that I shouldn't feel bad...that it wasn't my fault and that he didn't want me to cry about it. I placed my trust in him and he has been my friend and confidante ever since. Byakuya-sama and I both know Seiji, and we agree he is cut from the same cloth as our Torio and Koji. Get to know him and be comfortable with him. That is the best advice I can offer you, Renji-san."

"Okay...thanks," Renji said gratefully, glancing down at his empty tray, then back at Tetsuya, "Hey, you think they'll bring me some ice cream?"

Tetsuya gave him a cute smirk.

"Why do you think I sent them for the strawberries? They are very good with ice cream...and Koji knows that."

"Ah! I see, thinking ahead, using your connection. You're really smart, Tetsuya-san."

"So are you," Tetsuya said pointedly, "You are intelligent enough to turn your situation around and build an enjoyable life. It may not be the one you planned, but it will be an adventure."

Renji thought for a long moment, then loosed a soft sigh.

"Truth is, I never really had a plan," he said, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck absently, "I was saving up money to fix up a little place of my own and I wanted to be strong like Taichou, but I didn't really think a lot about the future. I didn't think about who I'd be with, because I wasn't with anyone...and I didn't see how I was going to find anyone. I never thought it would happen like this."

He spotted Ichigo standing in the doorway, looking at him and wearing a somber expression.

"Please excuse me, Renji-san," Tetsuya said, bowing his head slightly, "Koji and I must return home. I will come to see you again soon."

"Yeah, goodbye, Tetsuya-san. Thanks for coming by...you and Koji. Take care, okay?"

"I will. You take care of yourself as well, Renji-san."

Renji watched as the noble left, then looked back at Ichigo as he entered the room and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Rough day?" the redhead asked, moving closer.

"Yeah."

"Those pushy old bastards getting on your nerves? You want a back rub?"

"That would be good."

Ichigo stood and slipped out of his clothes, a small smile invading as Renji dropped a clean yukata around his shoulders.

"Why are you being so nice to me, all of a sudden?"

"I don't kick people when they're down. You know that," Renji chuckled, good-naturedly.

"Yeah, I know. That's partly why I was kind of glad you were chosen for me."

"Fuck you! You weren't glad!" Renji laughed, "You were as pissed as I was, you lying sack of shit."

"Maybe at first," the ginger-haired youth confessed, "But once I thought about it, I realized that it was good to have someone here who knows me...someone I can say anything to and he isn't going to think the worst of me. Everybody needs that."

"Is that why you lowered your pride and asked Taichou for help choosing my attendant?" Renji teased him.

"Well, something like that...someone that close to you, I couldn't take chances, you know? It had to be a good choice. And I knew Byakuya and Tetsuya would give me good advice. It was a little hard to choke down my pride and ask, but I'm not sorry. No one's going to hurt you and our baby, Renji. _Nobody_."

Renji was so busy feeling pleased and responding to the other man's words with warm touches and pleased kisses, it didn't occur to him until later.

_Did someone threaten to hurt us?_

_Is Ichigo afraid for us?_

_Why?_


	9. Not Just Words

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A shocking attack strikes the Shiba estate.

Renji's mind flickered sluggishly with returning awareness and he found himself lying in Ichigo's strong arms, the Shiba heir's hands caressing and infusing his more pronounced belly with calming reiatsu and the area under his soothing hands rumbling with impatience as the smell of cooking food reached them.

"You a little hungry there, Renj?" Ichigo laughed softly, continuing the infusion, "Or did you get too hungry and swallow Shihoin Satoshi whole?"

"Very funny, asshole," Renji grunted, shifting and sleepily nudging his husband's hand down lower.

Ichigo nipped at his earlobe and nibbled along the side of the redhead's neck, taking the cue to end the reiatsu infusion and seek Renji's engorged privates to relieve him of the resulting arousal. Renji's handsome, cinnamon colored eyes glazed over as Ichigo's hand wrapped around his bulging erection and began to slide up and down the long, thick shaft. The redhead rocked his hips gently in response, laying his head back on Ichigo's shoulder and yielding soft, feverish moans of approval at the slow, heavy stimulation. Renji's head turned and they met over the redhead's shoulder for a steamy bout of open-mouthed kisses, then Renji grabbed the Shiba heir and threw him down onto his back, letting his yukata slide down off of his tensed body as he mounted his noble mate and began to writhe wantonly atop him.

There was something so sexy and hypnotic about seeing the redhead, his eyes closed and his face written over with erotic pleasure, his hands tangled in the sheets and his powerful thighs clenching around Ichigo's undulating form that the Shiba heir had to fight off the rising surge in his own loins, so as to make the moment last as long as possible.

"Fuck!" he gasped, stiffening as he lost all ability to resist and his semen exploded out of him, making Renji's red mouth open into a ringing howl of completion, and the redhead's release erupt onto their skin.

"Oh..." Renji groaned, collapsing onto Ichigo and almost instantly losing consciousness.

"Whoa, you all right, Renji?" Ichigo asked quickly, nudging his motionless mate, "Renji?"

His heart skipped painfully at getting no answer and he scrambled out from under the redhead's body and rolled him onto his back.

"Renji!" he called urgently.

"Is something wrong, sir?" Seiji asked, poking his head into the room, "I thought I heard you..."

"Aw, Renji passed out. Can you get the clan healer?" Ichigo asked, patting his handsome counterpart's face and rubbing his wrists vigorously.

"Yes sir!" Seiji answered, flash stepping away.

"C'mon, damn it, Renji!"

Ichigo left the bed and flash stepped to the bathroom, where he bathed a washcloth in cool water, then returned to the unconscious redhead's side and washed his face gently.

"C'mon Renji, fun is fun, but you're kinda scaring me. Wake up, buddy."

Renji flinched at the touch of the dampness on his face, then he grimaced and his eyelids fluttered fitfully.

"Wh-what the heck?" he mumbled dazedly.

"You're okay," Ichigo said in a relieved tone as the healer arrived, "You just passed out for a minute."

"Oh..." the redhead managed, blinking to clear his vision.

He watched, frowning as the healer examined him, then drew back as he produced a syringe.

"Whoa! No way! What're you doing with that?" Renji squawked, shrinking back against Ichigo, "You're not sticking me with that! Get away from me!"

"Geez, Renji, it's just a vitamin shot," Ichigo sighed.

"You aren't getting enough nutrients from your food, Renji-sama," the old healer said, taking hold of his arm.

"What? No!" Renji yelled, paling as the needle bit into his flesh.

He collapsed in a heap onto the bed and Ichigo shook his head reprovingly.

"Really, Renji?" he mused, smirking affectionately.

"Well, he can probably use the rest," the healer suggested, "But I should warn you, Ichigo-sama. We will need to give these injections more frequently now, because it seems that Renji-sama is either not eating enough to sustain himself and the baby, or it may be that you are having multiple children."

"Huh? Multiple, as in more than one?" Ichigo asked.

"Yes," the healer said, smiling.

"Well, I know Renji's eating everything in sight," Ichigo confirmed, "so, I guess it's got to be multiples, right? How many are we talking about? Twins? Triplets? What?"

"Ah, I won't know how many reiatsus he is carrying until the chamber opens and I am able to make more direct contact. But I would guess twins, at this point."

"You think we're having twins?" Ichigo asked, grinning, "My sisters are twins. That's pretty cool."

"It is...as long as that is what this is," the healer said cautiously, "Ichigo-sama, there is one more condition that can cause this. It is rare, but sometimes the bearer's body will mistakenly decide that the spirit chamber is a foreign body, and it will start to reject the chamber."

"What? Why are you just telling me this now?" Ichigo demanded, "You didn't think that was important enough to mention before?"

"I didn't want to worry you unnecessarily," the healer corrected him, "It is a rare condition, but it does happen."

"Nobu, how do we know the difference? I mean, is there a way to tell whether this is twins or a problem?"

Nobu frowned and shook his head.

"We will only know if he begins to show more signs of one or the other. If it is just multiple reiatsus, his nutritional needs will continue to increase and he will have more nausea and dizzy spells. If it is a rejection, then he will have abdominal pain, power flares and lapses of consciousness. I am sorry, Ichigo-sama. I wish I could be more helpful."

"It's okay," Ichigo assured him, "I'm gonna take care of Renji. I'll let you know right away if he starts to have the signs you mentioned."

"Very well, Ichigo-sama," Nobu said, bowing, "Call on me at any time."

"I will," Ichigo promised.

He sighed softly and nuzzled into Renji's muscular shoulder, watching as the redhead slept. Renji rested peacefully for several hours, then his stomach growled noisily and he began to stir again.

"Hey Seiji?" the Shiba heir chuckled, "Better go and get some more for Renji to eat."

"Hai!" the attendant called from outside the door.

Ichigo slid a hand down to rub the redhead's more pronounced baby bump, earning a few sleepy kisses and a few mumbled words of gratitude.

"Thanks...feels good."

"You hungry?"

"Starving!" Renji yawned, stretching and sitting up.

Ichigo grinned and adjusted the pillows behind him. Renji frowned and looked down at the bump on his abdomen.

"Something wrong?" Ichigo asked.

"Naw. It just feels kinda heavy in there...like someone sneaked in here and stuck a big rock in my pelvis. I constantly feel like I've gotta pee, and like there isn't enough room for all of the food I've gotta eat. Is this what women feel like when they're knocked up? Why do they do it?"

"I guess because they love their partner so much that they want to make something that's both of them together. You know, one partner's hair, the other's eyes, one partner's cute pointy ears and the other's big hands and feet."

"Who has big hands and feet?" Renji asked, giving him a playful scowl, "And let's just hope the kid doesn't have your big mouth or we're in trouble!"

"Hey, I think you've got the bigger mouth, smartass!" Ichigo countered.

"Oh, I've got the bigger mouth? Well you've got the bigger ego! Mr. _Oh, I'm going to save everyone_! Please..."

"Well, I did save everyone," Ichigo said, smirking affectionately, "But I had some help, didn't I?"

"What're you talking about?" Renji sighed, "While you were getting your bankai in three days, I struggled for years. And you _beat_ Kuchiki taichou..."

"Only after you wore him down a little first," Ichigo said encouragingly, "And I was a bleeding mess when we were done."

"Fuck you! I barely put a scratch on the guy!"

"Well, I got pretty much killed by him, you and half the Gotei 13 before I grew strong enough to beat Byakuya."

"Yeah, what did it take...a month or so?" Renji complained, "Let's face it, I'm all talk and not much else. You've got more to give this kid than I do. That's why I'm having the kid, right?"

"Is that really what you think, Renj?" Ichigo asked, sobering, "Cause I think the only reason I'm not carrying the kid and you are is because of stupid noble rules you and I didn't make. And look, it doesn't matter the difference in the time it took to get our bankai. We both have one. We've both fought damned hard to master our power. I think we're both pretty respectable that way. You've got nothing to feel bad about, so don't be so hard on yourself, okay?"

"Yeah, all right," Renji sighed, "Sorry. I still feel a little strange about all of this."

"Yeah, me too," Ichigo agreed, "But it's not all bad. I mean, yeah, you're throwing up and fainting, you have some mood swings and power bursts..."

"That power burst could have killed Hinata," Renji argued.

The two young men paused, looking at each other, then burst out laughing.

"This is not very nice," Ichigo giggled, "I think Hinata would be offended you didn't appreciate his heroic effort to keep you from blowing us all up."

"Oh, I appreciate it," Renji snickered, "I just think I needed to get a little payback for him cracking all of those bad jokes about us having sex and getting me knocked up is all. I don't want him dead or anything...just brought down a peg."

"Well, last I heard, he was discharged from the hospital and Shihoin Satoshi had him curled up in bed and being spoiled by everyone."

"Oh kami!" Renji laughed, "He's probably driving even the Shihoin clan crazy!"

"But Satoshi probably likes the sex. He kinda hinted that the guy knows his way around in the sack."

"Not like us, bumbling around until we figure it out, huh?" Renji mused, "But uh...aren't they some kinda resonants too? I thought I heard something about that."

"Yeah, they are," Ichigo confirmed.

"Well, I hope they're using a protection charm or Satoshi's going to be carrying pretty soon...and with him being a cat, he'll probably have a whole litter of babies, ne?"

"Yeah," Ichigo said, grinning widely, "although you and I might be having a litter, ourselves. I wonder if you might be part Shihoin!"

"Wh-what the hell'd you say?" Renji asked, frowning, "Did you say we're having more than one kid? When did this happen? Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"Oh damn, I'm sorry, Renj," Ichigo apologized, "I forgot you were passed out when the healer figured it out earlier."

"So, how many kids am I having?" the redhead asked in a alarmed tone, "Just like twins or what?"

"Take it easy, okay?" Ichigo soothed him, "Nobu said that he wasn't sure how many babies there are exactly. But he said not to worry because all you need are some extra nutrient shots."

"Extra shots?" Renji repeated, paling, "How many are we talking about? I fucking hate shots! Oh man, I feel sick just thinking about this!"

"Take it easy, all right?" Ichigo pleaded, "It's not good for you to start flipping out. They already had to give you a pretty powerful limiter to keep your power flares under control."

"Damn it!" Renji swore, his chest heaving softly, "What the hell? This is like a nightmare! I had to get married when I didn't want to, knocked up by another guy, puking, aching back, passing out, extra babies, extra shots and now power flares that can kill us all? What else? Are you gonna tell me the kids might be monsters and eat me when they're born? I've had nightmares about the kid I was having doing that!"

"It's gonna be okay, Renji," Ichigo said quietly, wrapping his arms around the distressed redhead and holding him tightly, "I won't let anything happen to you. I won't."

"Like you can stop it!" Renji huffed, sweat breaking out on his forehead, "This is all going too fast, Ichigo. I feel really sick..."

"You're just panicky," Ichigo assured him, "A lot of shit has happened. It's not surprising you'd feel overwhelmed, but it's gonna be okay, I promise."

"But all of those things...and...you know, I heard it in your voice before, when you got back from the meeting with the Noble's General Council. There are other clans that don't like me being married to you."

"Like what they say matters," Ichigo said, brushing it off, "They can't argue with our resonance, Renji."

"You really believe in that resonance crap? You think this is perfection, here? Cause I don't feel perfect? And if it's perfect, then why all of the extra problems...the fainting, the shots, the power flares? And there's more, isn't there?"

"Renji..."

"There is! Don't lie to me! If that healer had more to say than that we're having more than one kid, you fucking tell me now! Don't screw around with me, Ichigo. I'm not kidding, I'll beat it out of you!" Renji yelled.

"Whoa!" Ichigo managed, placing his hands on Renji's tensed biceps, "You have to stop this now, Renji. It's not good for you to get so upset."

"Upset? You think _this_ is upset?" Renji fumed, "One more thing, Ichigo...one fucking more thing and I'm going to...shit, I don't _what_ I'm gonna do!"

"Shh, stop it. Calm down. There was only one more thing the healer told me, but he said it's not likely to happen. It's a rare thing. And he only told me in case of emergency. Stop thinking the worst is gonna happen. I'll take care of you. You and the kids will be all right, I promise, Renji. I _swear_!"

Renji swallowed hard, his face going almost sheet white at the suggestion of more complications.

"Okay," he panted softly, "I'm...I'll be calm about it. Just tell me, all right?"

"Sure," Ichigo said, letting go of him and looking into his widened eyes, "Nobu just said that he's pretty sure the symptoms you have mean that we're having multiples, which is fine. He just warned me that if you start having really bad abdominal cramps, power flares and passing out..."

"I'm having all of that, except the stomach pain," the redhead said worriedly, "What does it mean?"

"I told you. It probably just means that you're having multiples. But in some rare cases, it's meant that the bearer's body was rejecting the spirit chamber."

Ichigo spotted the fresh signs of panic in Renji's eyes and raised his hands stayingly.

"Hey, the chances are way higher it's multiples. Don't freak out. It's going to be fine."

He paused, watching as Renji continued to pant softly and gather himself. Slowly, the redhead's body calmed and the anxiety in his eyes began to fade.

"You're right," Renji sighed finally, "I can't just sit here, thinking about this. I have to think about something else. Maybe...could we go for a walk or something? Just around the gardens? I need some fresh air."

"Sure," Ichigo agreed, smiling at him, "Seiji?"

The attendant appeared in the doorway and gazed at them questioningly.

"Sir?"

"Can you get Renji a robe and some slippers? We want to go for a little walk."

"Of course, Ichigo-sama," Seiji answered, turning into the dressing area.

Renji climbed out of bed and paused for a moment, touching his hand to his forehead.

"You okay?" Ichigo asked, watching him closely.

"Yeah," Renji assured him, "I think it was just being in bed so much. I got up to suddenly."

He moved into the dressing area and waited patiently as Seiji wrapped a warm robe around him and set a pair of comfortable slippers on his feet.

"It's cool outside," Seiji said, smiling up at him, "It should feel good. Koji told me that it's good to keep your room a little colder than normal, so you won't be overly warm."

"I wondered why it was so chilly in here," Ichigo chuckled.

"It does feel good," Renji said appreciatively, meeting his attendant's friendly eyes in the full-length mirror, "Thanks a lot, Seiji. That was nice of you."

"I'm only doing my job, sir," Seiji said, stepping back and following quietly as Ichigo and Renji left the bedroom.

They descended the stairs and made their way out into the gardens. Renji breathed in deeply.

"Did it rain last night?" he asked, looking around.

"A little," Ichigo confirmed as they started down a winding path through the plum and sakura orchard.

"Man, I've been so out of it that I hadn't even noticed. I'm glad it's cool, though. Seiji's right that I feel overly hot a lot."

"You are hot," Ichigo said, leaning over and breathing the words into his ear, "I especially like it when you just wake up and your hair's messy and you still look like you're half asleep."

Renji blushed and pushed him away.

"Don't do that!" he laughed, "You're gonna get me horny and we won't get to walk very much. I need to stretch my legs."

He caught Ichigo's smirk and swatted at him playfully.

"Not _that_ one, asshole! You..."

Renji stopped mid-sentence as a sudden feeling of warning passed over him. It occurred to him suddenly that the area had gone oddly silent and Ichigo, too, seemed to notice.

"Renji..." Ichigo whispered, taking the redhead's hand in his.

The two heard a sudden, swift flash step and heard Seiji cry out in warning.

"Look out, Renji-sama!" the youth screamed, throwing up a protective barrier in front of them as the trees ahead of them lit with unnatural brightness.

Renji gasped his attendant's name, reeling as Ichigo's arm wrapped around him, and the Shiba heir threw them to the ground. A huge flash of heat and light passed over them and Ichigo covered Renji's body protectively with his.

"Are you okay, Renji?" Ichigo asked urgently, as the two disentangled themselves and looked around.

Renji's heart sank as he spotted Seiji's collapsed form.

"Seiji!" he cried, trying to crawl forward.

"No! Stay down!" Ichigo snapped, shoving the redhead back, "I'll get him."

Ichigo rose cautiously and summoned his weapon to his hand. He approached the fallen attendant and lifted him carefully over one shoulder, watching the area around them as he backed to the place where Renji remained on his knees.

"Is he...?"

"He's alive," Ichigo said softly, "But we need to get out of here and get him back to the house. Stay close to me."

"Okay," Renji agreed, "I can't do anything anyway. I don't have any powers."

"Just let me take care of you. Trust me."

"I trust you," Renji said, moving in close to Ichigo as he backed them towards the house.

They reached the edge of the orchard and found a group of house guards and the clan healer rushing out to greet them.

"Are you all right, sirs!" one of the guards cried.

"Ichigo!" Isshin shouted from behind the group, "Segare, what happened?"

Their rescuers froze as Ichigo lowered Seiji's battered form onto the ground and Nobu rushed in to tend to him.

"What happened is just what you warned me might happen when we were at the council meeting earlier. Someone tried to kill Renji!"


	10. Heart of the Rukongai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Renji and Seiji connect as Seiji recovers from his injury.

Ichigo entered the house alongside a pair of guards who he directed to remain at the front doors.

“There are several other guard posts that Tetsuya helped me set up. I want you guys to check in with each other at least once an hour. New cameras are being installed to cover most of the grounds, but they won’t be fully up and running for a few days. Just…keep your eyes peeled. Someone tried to kill Renji this morning, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let’em have another shot.”

“Hai, Ichigo-sama,” the guards answered, bowing.

Ichigo turned and flash stepped up the stairs, then hurried to his bedroom suite. His stomach dropped slightly and his heart quickened at finding the room empty and Renji’s bodyguard gone as well.

_He probably went to visit Seiji._

Ichigo left the bedroom and went back down the stairs, taking a concealed, servant’s passage to the area of the staff quarters. He sighed in relief at finding Renji’s bodyguard standing at Seiji’s door and the redhead sitting in the room, beside the bed, where Seiji laid sleeping with Kuchiki Koji curled up next to him. And Renji wasn’t alone, but was seated alongside Kuchiki Tetsuya, who was looking on sympathetically and holding Renji’s hand. Ichigo’s face softened at the sight, and he stood quietly in the doorway, watching for a moment.

“This is killing me, Tetsuya,” Renji said softly, looking down at Seiji’s pale face as the attendant slept in Koji’s embrace, “I _literally_ just met this kid. And he’s not just a kid, he’s a noble kid. He wasn’t like me, being raised in muddy streets with rags hanging off my body and digging out of trash cans to eat. He learned manners. He learned to follow rules, to…to clean up after himself, to wipe his feet when he comes inside, to say please and thank you and everything else. Even having come to live here, I’m still around half monkey, and everyone knows it.”

“That isn’t true, Renji-san,” Tetsuya said, squeezing the tormented redhead’s hand, “You are a well respected fukutaichou. And you are always polite when you come to Kuchiki Manor.”

“Yeah,” Renji said with an edge of sarcasm, “because I know Taichou doesn’t put up with anything else. You follow his rules or you scram.”

“Which only proves that what you said before is not true. You are a freer spirit, yes. But Byakuya-sama very much appreciates the strong survival spirit in you, just as he appreciates it in Rukia and me. If you were thinking straight, you would not be questioning this.”

“Ugh!” Renji groaned, running his hands over his face, “How the fuck am I supposed to think straight? Someone hates me, Tetsuya! And they hate me enough to set up a bomb and risk every-fucking-body here, because _anybody_ could have walked through that area and set off that kido bomb! And they did hurt someone else. They hurt Seiji, a kid who’s noble and…and kind, just a good person! He didn’t have to go and fucking jump in front of that thing for me! I didn’t ask him to get hurt for me. I don’t want him to be hurt, for me or anyone else!”

“I do understand how you feel, Renji,” Tetsuya assured him, “You remember that I told you on my first night at Kuchiki Manor, my loss of control nearly killed poor Koji. I felt so very guilty. I could not even look him in the eyes for a while after that. But, with time, I realized that people who love us will always look out for us, whether we want them to or not. We cannot stop them from doing so. They are acting of their own free will and protecting what matters to them. We must respect that.”

“Y-yeah,” Renji said, brushing away a tear that had escaped his eye, “I do respect it. I just hate that the kid got hurt, you know? What a shitty first day. What’s up for the second day? Throwing him off a cliff?”

“Seiji will be all right,” Tetsuya said reassuringly, “You heard Nobu-san whne he examined Seiji. He said he is healing well and will only need a few days rest to recover.”

“I know, I know,” Renji said miserably, “I just…wanna take it back. I wanna, you know, not have gone outside…not…”

“You shouldn’t have to lock yourself away, Renji-san,” Tetsuya said bracingly, “This is not your fault.”

“What are you talking about?” Renji demanded, sniffing and wiping his eyes, “Some asshole nearly killed this nice, innocent kid, just to get at me! How is that not my fault? I’m the reason that bomb was there!”

“No, now you know that is not true,” Tetsuya said firmly, “Are you suggesting that it is also my fault that my powers went out of control and hurt my Koji?”

“No! I didn’t mean that,” Renji said, shaking his head, “I just mean…”

“Tetsuya’s right,” Ichigo said, stepping forward.

He made a sound of surprise as Renji bolted from the chair and sought his arms, holding him crushingly close.

“Whoa,” Ichigo said softly, hugging the redhead and feeling a little chill as he realized that Renji was shaking all over with emotion, “Easy. It’s okay. Everything’s okay. You’re safe. I’m safe. Seiji’s gonna be okay. Take it easy, all right?”

“Y-yeah,” Renji managed, peeling himself away from Ichigo and wiping his wet eyes, “Sorry.”

“You don’t have anything to apologize for,” Ichigo said, kissing him and hugging him again, “You didn’t do a thing wrong.”

“I know,” Renji sighed, rubbing his hands over his face and running fingers through his messy hair, “You and Tetsuya are right. I know, but…”

He paused, blinking, as he realized that the blue-eyed Kuchiki had slipped away.

“He didn’t have to leave,” the redhead complained.

“Tetsuya’s only giving us a little space to talk about things,” Ichigo assured him, “C’mon, let’s go and have a shower together, okay? You’re overdue for an infusion.”

“I don’t feel like taking a bath.”

“Well, you need one,” Ichigo teased, “You stink.”

Renji frowned and sniffed an armpit, then scowled.

“I do not, asshole!” he snapped, “ _You’re_ the one who stinks!”

“Then, you should come and give me a bath.”

“Huh,” Renji huffed, crossing his arms, “You’re just trying to get me naked with you, so I’ll…”

“Ahem,” Ichigo said, glancing meaningfully at Seiji, who was stirring and groaning softly.

Koji came awake suddenly and held the other attendant down gently as he tried to raise himself.

“Seiji!” Renji exclaimed, dropping back into his chair as Ichigo claimed the one Tetsuya had been using, “How are you feeling?”

“Oh, me?” the attendant said groggily, “I’m five…I…I mean fine. M-my head hurts, but I’m okay. You don’t need to worry, Renji-san. I will be able to resume my duties…”

“I don’t fucking _care_ about that!” Renji snapped, scowling petulantly, “I don’t want you throwing yourself in front of any more kido bombs to save me. I survived the shit hole down in Inuzuri as a kid. I think I can survive some stupid, bigoted jerks who wanna kill me. What I _don’t_ want is some young kid with his whole future in front of him goddamned throwing his life away for some mongrel that just crawled up outta the gutter!”

Ichigo and Koji’s faces reflected surprise, while Seiji’s scrunched up and his eyes filled with tears.

“P-please don’t say things like that about yourself, Renji-sama,” the youth pleaded softly, “It isn’t true when others say it, and it’s not true when you say it either. It only hurts more to hear you talk like that.”

“The kid’s right,” Ichigo said sternly, “We all know where you came from and how hard you fought to get here. You don’t get to talk trash about the guy who kept Rukia alive and got her to where Byakuya could find her. You don’t get to say that to the guy who you turned against your own taichou to support. And you fucking don’t get to talk like that to the guy you’re married to and whose baby you’re having!”

Renji’s face took on a sheepish look and he gave his teary-eyed attendant a little, apologetic smile.

“Yeah,” he huffed, shaking his head, “you’re right. I shouldn’t say it.”

“You shouldn’t,” Seiji insisted, “You’re a good person, Renji-sama. I know that some of the nobles give you a difficult time, but that doesn’t make you what they say you are. Still, when you use their words against yourself, it’s like you are agreeing with them.”

Renji’s brown eyes widened and filled with tears as his injured attendant continued.

“You are nothing like they say. You may be wilder, more untamed than a noble son is. But you are also wiser and more prepared to fight for your survival. Something I learned from your example when I didn’t yet know you, is that not all fights are fair. Not all enemies will play by our rules. It becomes a question of what kind of person one wants to be. I had to ask myself, would I be a person who would become a monster to defeat one? I never want to be a monster, but I do want to survive, so I learned how to fight monsters without becoming like them. I chose to risk death rather than to change.”

Renji bit at his lip and let out a long sigh.

“Well, you’ve got guts. I’ll say that. But, we wanna keep those guts inside you, where they belong. I know it’s your job to protect me, and I’ve got no damned powers to help. Just…really try hard to _not_ get yourself killed. I like you, and I’ve watched too many friends like you get killed. Fuck up in any other way you want to, but don’t get yourself killed for me, okay?”

Seiji gave the redhead a helpless smile and nodded, then he winced and grabbed at his head.

“Ow!” he gasped.

“Yeah,” Renji said, crossing his arms, “that’s what you get for jumping in front of a kido bomb. I hope you’ve learned your lesson, kid. Cause, next time, I expect your shielding will have improved so that it doesn’t break from a kido bomb. I want your ass out there on the training grounds every day, practicing. Have Koji come over and train with you, if you want. I would, but I’ve still got a bun in the oven, so our sessions won’t start until after my kids are born.”

Seiji’s eyes rounded and he stared at the redhead in shock.

“Y-you would train with me, Renji-sama? But, I’m just a…!”

“Now, you stop right there,” Renji chided the youth, “You just got through telling me that I shouldn’t say bad things about myself, and that I shouldn’t use the words other people say to put myself down. The same damned thing goes for you. I haven’t been in a noble home that long, but I’ve been here long enough to know that noble attendants are not just servants. When someone wants to get to a noble leader, they always either have to corrupt or kill the attendant. I’m not gonna make it that easy for’em to do that to us. First off, you and I are going to be like brothers. I’ve got terrible manners and you’ve got a rod up your ass, following all of those silly rules, but if we just overlook that part, the rest is okay. Second, you are going to spend a lot of time with Tetsuya, learning everything you can about how he protects Taichou. That way, you’ll be well prepared the next time some creep decides he wants to plant a bomb where I’m walking with my husband. You got all that?”

“Yes, Renji-sama,” Seiji answered, blushing brightly.

“That’s _Renji_ , when we’re here at home.”

“But…”

“Uh-uh,” Renji said firmly, “Ichigo and Koji are significant others. You don’t need to tack on a sama in front of them.”

Seiji glanced at Ichigo who smirked and shrugged.

“He’s your boss,” the ginger chuckled, “You’d better do what he says.”

Ichigo glanced at Koji for a moment, then caught Renji’s eye.

“Hey, I think we were talking about a shower before. Why don’t we let Koji take care of Seiji now and I’ll take care of you?”

“Yeah, okay,” the redhead said, smirking.

He gave his attendant a stern look and crossed his arms.

“You stay outta trouble now, you hear?”

“Yes, sir, Renji-sa…”

“Ah-ah…”

“Oh, I mean, Renji,” the youth hastily corrected himself.

“Get some sleep. You’ll be real busy when you’re better.”

“Come on, bossy,” Ichigo said, taking the redhead by the arm and tugging.

“I’m coming. I’m coming,” Renji complained, “Look who’s being bossy now.”

“Well, I am your husband and your leader.”

“Oh, is that what you call what you’re doing?” Renji quipped.

“Oh, you’re asking for it now, buddy,” Ichigo said, narrowing his eyes, “Get your ass in that shower. I’m not gonna wait all day.”

“Whew, you horny or something?” Renji asked, “Cause you’re being pretty aggressive.”

“You wanna see aggressive? Just keep me waiting a little longer and I’ll show your ass aggressive!”

The two grabbed hand towels as they ran into the bathroom and launched into a towel fight, winding the towels, then snapping them playfully at each other. Renji yelped and swore as Ichigo’s towel struck his still clothed bottom. He retaliated immediately with a strike to Ichigo’s exposed hip.

“Ow!”

“Well, you wanted to start something,” Renji laughed, letting his yukata slide to the floor.

He started towards the shower, only to find himself captured and pushed back against the wall, with Ichigo invading his mouth amorously.

“Mmmmph,” Renji managed, between hard, eager kisses, “What’s goin’ on? What’s got you all hot and bothered?”

“You do,” Ichigo confessed, still kissing him feverishly, “Just seeing you acting like yourself again with Seiji and…”

“Whaddya mean, acting like myself?” Renji mused, “I’ve been myself all along. I mean, I’ve been kinda screwed up with the hormones and stuff, but…”

He paused, surrendering to another bout of heated kisses.

“Well, I don’t know if you’re making any sense, but I like the kissing,” Renji chuckled, “You think we can get in the shower now?”

“Mmmhmm,” Ichigo said, backing him across the bathroom, then pausing to turn on the shower before attacking Renji’s hungry lips again while they waited for the water to warm.

They stepped in, under the hot spray, indulging in each other’s lips, their tongues battling fiercely. Ichigo forced his red-haired mate back against the wall and pressed up against him, rubbing his alert privates against Renji’s and sliding a hand around behind the redhead to slide wet fingers into his water dampened anus to prepare him. Renji moaned and writhed impatiently as Ichigo simultaneously flowed stabilizing reiatsu into his body and continued the desired stimulation.

“Aw fuck, do we have to even do the infusion?” Renji complained breathlessly, “It’ll get into my body if we just start doing it, won’t it?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Ichigo panted, shifting and nudging his way between the redhead’s thighs.

Renji snapped at his throat, distracting him into a rough entry. Renji groaned loudly and swore.

“Sorry,” Ichigo apologized, holding the two of them forcibly still.

Renji struggled beneath his grasp, hissing in his ear.

“C’mon! F-fuck! I want you so bad. I want you! Move, you bastard!”

“I am,” Ichigo giggled.

“What the fuck are you laughing at?” the redhead objected, spreading his thighs wider and rearing up against Ichigo’s body, rubbing erotically against him.

He grabbed his husband’s hips, pulling on him impatiently.

“Faster!” Renji moaned, rotating his hips, “Oh my god, h-harder! C’mon…oh god…oh god…oh god, I’m gonna…!”

A ringing howl of pleasure erupted from Renji’s red lips, inciting a hard groan of completion from Ichigo as he emptied himself into Renji’s quaking body. The two gasped and panted, reeling as their hearts pounded wildly. Ichigo pressed his lips against his husband’s flushed earlobe, nipping gently.

“I love you, Renji,” he sighed contentedly, “I was really scared when that bomb went off. All I could think of was that I might lose you and our kid. I didn’t want Seiji to get hurt either, but I would have gone crazy if you or our babies had died. Don’t scare me like that again.”

He would have said more, but he realized suddenly that Renji was hanging limply against him.

“Renj?”

“H-hey, you all right?”

“Yeah,” Renji managed sleepily, “I’m just tired. Can we go to bed now?”

“You wanna dry off first or should we just dive in?” Ichigo snickered.

“Whatever you want, but don’t let go of me. I don’t think my legs can hold me up after that.”

“Don’t worry about a thing,” Ichigo laughed softly, helping him out of the shower, “I’ve got you.”


	11. The Need to Feed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Byakuya has a dire warning for Ichigo about Renji's safety.

**(…five months later…)**

“More! Oh my god, I need more!” Renji complained as he polished off the last of a bowl of rice, chicken and vegetables, “S-sorry, Seiji, I…”

“I understand,” his attendant laughed, placing a large bowl filled with a huge, warm brownie that was topped with chocolate ice cream, coated in thick, warm fudge and covered with whipped cream, chopped nuts and a cherry, “There is plenty more where all of this came from.”

“Oh, thank kami!” Renji sighed, digging into the sweet fudge and ice cream, “This is the best. Mmm, can you tell Ichigo I need him to come and rub my belly? It’s kinda itchy again.”

“Sure, Renji,” Seiji chuckled, heading out of the room.

Renji grinned a moment later as a tapping sounded on the door frame and Byakuya entered the room alongside an also impressively pregnant Tetsuya.

“Damn, you got big fast,” Renji giggled, bringing a little flush to his noble friend’s cheeks.

Koji appeared in the doorway, carrying a brownie sundae for his blushing master, who didn’t wait a moment before digging in as enthusiastically as Renji.

“Seiji was all ready with this, because he heard we were coming to visit,” Koji explained.

“Come on in and sit down,” Renji said through a mouthful of gooey brownie, “It’s good to see you, Taichou. Hey Tetsuya-san.”

“You are looking well, Renji,” Byakuya said approvingly.

“Yeah, as long as I eat pretty much constantly,” the redhead chuckled, “You’re looking really good too, Tetsuya-san. How are you feeling?”

“Very hungry,” Tetsuya sighed, “It seems like I never stop being hungry.”

“It’s a good thing we’ve got a ton of food around here.”

Renji licked a glob of fudge from his fingers.

“You know who else is pregnant?” he asked, leaning forward and grinning conspiratorially.

“Ah, Shihoin Satoshi,” Byakuya said, smirking slightly.

“Yeah, isn’t it great?” Renji snickered, “He’s got Hinata over there doing so many infusions and…”

Renji colored slightly.

“And, um… _stuff_ , that we haven’t had to worry about him coming over here and causing trouble for the last few weeks. If we’re lucky, I’ll have the little tykes soon and he’ll be done with his counseling duties.”

“I’m sure you and Ichigo would be very relieved,” Tetsuya laughed softly.

“Sure as shootin,” Renji agreed, “Hey, when you see Satoshi, thank the guy for me and tell him he can just keep having all the kids he can hold.”

“I’m sure he will be amused to hear that,” Byakuya said, shaking his head.

“Hey, what’s going on in here?” Ichigo asked as he walked into the room, “Looks like a pretty big feast.”

“I think Renji-san needs an infusion,” Tetsuya mumbled around his ice cream.

“In a minute, I’m finishing up here.”

“Ichigo,” Byakuya said, touching the Shiba heir’s arm, “If I might have a word with you while Renji and Tetsuya finish eating?”

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Ichigo said, stepping out of the room again with Byakuya, “What’s up? Is there some kinda trouble? Did you and Tetsuya come here for more than visiting?”

“We are here to visit you and Renji,” Byakuya said solemnly, “but I do have to deliver a warning.”

“What is it?” Ichigo asked anxiously, “I’ve had guards around Renji every minute since the attack five months ago. There hasn’t been another attempt since then.”

“Maybe not here,” Byakuya said, frowning, “but there have been incidences in other families with highly placed clan wives with mixed or common blood.”

“Yeah, I’ve been hearing about that,” Ichigo sighed, “That’s why we’ve been even more cautious with Renji lately. One or two things that happened weren’t far from here.”

Byakuya paused for a moment, his eyes reflecting deep worry.

“An attempt on Tetsuya’s life was headed off just last night.”

“What?” Ichigo gasped, glancing into the room, where Renji and Tetsuya were talking between bites of their dessert, “What happened? Another kido bomb?”

“No,” Byakuya said, the worry in his eyes increasing, “A poison.”

“Poison?” Ichigo breathed, his heart pounding as he watched Renji take another bite of his dessert, “Like, in his food or…?”

“It was placed in the food he was to be given,” Byakuya continued, “Luckily, we always check his food before it is taken to his room, and also, Tetsuya’s power allows him to slow the absorption of any poison that does get into his system. We were lucky this time. We found the poison before he ate the food it was in.”

“Oh my god!” Ichigo whispered.

“We stopped it.”

“But you’re worried this isn’t the end of it.”

“It is not,” Byakuya affirmed, “One of my sources has discovered a link to an old illegal group that once targeted the mixed bloods and commoners brought into the family. They are the ones who were responsible for the illegal noble’s prison that held Tetsuya and his parents. When it happened before, we found and arrested the leaders, and we stopped their activities. But it seems that others have carried on. Ichigo, the attacks are getting closer to home and more and more brazen. I do not believe it is safe anymore, here in town, so I am moving Tetsuya to my retreat at Sakura no Kaiyou for the rest of his gestation. It is in a protected place, private, and it is filled with only my most trusted staff. I want you to consider moving there with Renji for the rest of his gestation as well. We can protect both Tetsuya and Renji better if they are there.”

“You really are worried, aren’t you?” Ichigo said, rubbing his chin, “Well, I trust your judgment. If you think it’s not safe, then I’m inclined to agree with you. Just, I don’t want to freak Renji out with a lot of worries. I’ll tell him it’s partly for his safety, but I’ll also say he’ll be in Tetsuya’s company, which would be good for both of them anyway, and it’s a relaxing place for our kids to be born.”

“Very well. We will be making the move tomorrow. If you wish, you may join us and we can travel there together.”

“You’ve got it,” Ichigo said, nodding.

The two stepped back into the bedroom as Renji took the last bites of his dessert.

“Good timing,” he chuckled, rubbing his mouth with the back of one rough, tanned hand, “I really need that belly rub now.”

“What?” Ichigo said, smirking, “You have a tummy ache, now that you put away all of that food?”

“Nope, my belly itches and I feel a little dizzy.”

“I’ve got you.”

“Well,” Byakuya said, giving the redhead a nod, “Tetsuya and I must return home now for his next infusion. We will see the two of you later.”

“Bye, Taichou. Bye Tetsuya. Good seeing you.”

Ichigo waited until the two had gone, then he climbed onto the bed and settled behind Renji, wrapping his arms around the redhead’s waist to begin the infusion.

“You feeling all right?” he asked.

“Yeah, fine, except for the itchiness and dizziness. But Nobu said those things are normal now.”

“But remember,” Ichigo said, firmly, “Nobu also said that even though we’re past the point of worrying about your body rejecting the spirit chamber, now we have to watch you to make sure that the expanding reiatsu inside you doesn’t interfere with your spirit core that’s also in your abdomen.”

“Yeah, I remember,” Renji assured him, “Don’t worry. If I even have the slightest thing that doesn’t feel right, I always ask Nobu about it right away.”

“Yeah, I know. You’ve been real good about that.”

“I want our kids to be healthy.”

“Yeah,” Ichigo said, smiling and flushing a little, “me too.”

Renji grinned and leaned back into Ichigo’s strong arms, turning his head to indulge in a bout of warm, wet kisses as Ichigo fed the area around the spirit chamber with his glowing reiatsu.

“Renj, we need to talk about something,” Ichigo said hesitantly.

“What? Is something wrong?” Renji asked, stiffening slightly under his husband’s hands.

“Well, yeah and no. I mean, there haven’t been any threats to you. Our security is doing a good job of protecting you. It’s just…”

“Something happened, didn’t it?” Renji asked, a look of worry invading his cinnamon colored eyes, “Maybe not here, but…”

“Someone tried to poison Tetsuya,” Ichigo confessed quietly.

“What?”

“It’s okay. You saw that he’s fine. They didn’t get to him, but they tried to poison him. Byakuya told me that he’s planning to take Tetsuya to his safest retreat, Sakura no Kaiyou.”

“I’ve been there,” Renji replied, his eyes widening, “That place is like the soul king’s gardens. It’s one of the most beautiful places in all of Soul Society.”

“Yeah,” Ichigo agreed, “well, Byakuya thinks it will be a good place for Tetsuya to relax and have the baby without any worries. And he also said that if we wanted, we could go and stay there with them.”

“Really?” Renji asked, perking, “That place is _amazing_! And don’t get me started on how good the food is.”

“Yeah,” Ichigo agreed, “You’d have Tetsuya for company, and get waited on, hand and foot. I thought you might enjoy that. What do you think?”

“What do I think?” Renji laughed, “What I’m thinking is, when do we leave?”

“In the morning,” Ichigo said, sighing inwardly with relief, “We’ll just be taking Nobu and our personal attendants with us. Byakuya’s got everything else taken care of.”

“Oh man! It’s going to be like the best damned vacation ever. Not that it hasn’t been great here, but…”

“It’s hard to compete with Byakuya when it comes to that kind of thing,” Ichigo chuckled, “He’s a master at making it beautiful.”

“You got that right,” Renji agreed, leaning back against Ichigo’s chest and closing his eyes as his husband finished the infusion, “Man, this is gonna be great…beautiful house, attendants waiting on us, pretty trails to walk, an endless supply of the best food, served by the best cooks. I’m gonna get so spoiled I won’t wanna come back here.”

“Heh, we have to come back eventually, but I think we’ll have a really great time there.”

“Me and Tetsuya can compare belly sizes every day and waddle around together. It’ll be good not to be the only pregnant guy there, not that I mind so much like I used to,” Renji chattered on.

Ichigo laughed softly, his hands caressing his cheerful husband’s rounded belly and his lips seeking the sensitive place beneath Renji’s soft earlobe. The light pressure made Renji suddenly stop talking, and he stole a glance at Ichigo, already feeling a telling throb in his loins.

“You almost done there?” he said in a lower, huskier voice, “I’m getting sorta turned on.”

“Me too,” Ichigo answered, running a line of kisses along the redhead’s vulnerable throat, “You sure you’re feeling okay for it?”

“What? Are you kiddin’ me? I’m always up for that.”

“Mmmmm, good to hear,” Ichigo breathed, biting down on Renji’s shoulder, “ _You_ had something to eat, but now I’m hungry.”

“I’ve got the cure for that,” Renji purred, turning to meet his husband for a long, open-mouthed kiss.

“Damn, you’re right. That’s just what I need,” Ichigo growled, pulling the redhead onto his lap and exploring his mouth more desirously.

His hands wrapped around Renji’s soft bottom, squeezing and encouraging his powerful hips to move. The friction between their aroused nether parts made the two men growl and kiss harder, grinding against each other heatedly. Ichigo’s seeking fingertips found Renji’s already erect nipples and teased them until the handsome redhead swore.

“Fuck! Y-you don’t have to do that. I’m already hard as a goddamned rock, here!”

One of Ichigo’s hands slid down between them, and the ginger-haired man grinned as he fondled Renji’s thick and leaking cock.

“Damn, Renji, you are hard as a rock. Can’t leave you like that, I guess.”

“What’re you gonna…?”

Renji gave a surprised yelp as Ichigo pushed him down onto his back and bent forward, pushing his thighs apart and hungrily attacking his flushed nether parts.

“Oh! Oh f-fuck, that feels so good!” Renji panted, pushing his hips up to meet his partner’s devouring mouth, “Ichigo…!”

Ichigo’s fingers dug into his thighs, pushing them open wider as the Shiba heir plundered his warm genitals and teased Renji’s entrance with a hot, eager tongue. As the redhead moaned and writhed beneath him, Ichigo dampened his fingers and began a slow preparation.

“What’re you doing?” Renji complained breathlessly, “You tryin’ to drive me insane, here? Just put it in already! We did it earlier. Did you forget already?”

“Naw,” Ichigo chuckled, grinning at his lover’s impatience, “I just like seeing you react when I make love to you.”

Renji stiffened suddenly and Ichigo made a sound of surprise as tears welled up in the corners of his eyes.

“Don’t _do_ that you asshole!” he groaned, wiping his eyes, “You know the hormones are on overload and I’m gonna fucking cry!”

“Sorry,” Ichigo apologized, biting at his lips to keep from smiling.

_God, he’s so damned cute!_

_He’d absolutely kill me for calling him cute._

_I love you, Renji!_

“C’mere.”

Renji climbed onto his husband’s lap, raising his hips and positioning himself, then he slowly impaled himself on his husband’s thick, wet erection. He glared down into Ichigo’s warm, affectionate eyes and kissed him as the two began to move together.

_Hot…_

_Renji’s so hot inside._

Ichigo dropped onto his back, letting Renji set the pace and depth of their thrusts as they made love.

_I know he’s still sensitive about his tattoos disappearing, but he doesn’t have to be. Renji’s just beautiful, tattoos or no tattoos. His thick hair…his wild scent…his rough hands and mouth…everything. There’s no one like Renji._

_I wonder how that elixir sensed it when we had no idea. I wonder why it took so long for Renji and me to figure it out. We both resisted. We tried to say that we couldn’t be told to fall in love. And the truth is, we couldn’t. Even being told that we were meant to be together and having everyone push us, we had to figure it all out in our own time. I’m glad we took the time. It wouldn’t feel real if we hadn’t explored it and come to it like we did._

_He looks amazing like this…sweating all over, gripping the sheets, his hair all messy and his body shaking because he wants me in him so much. And to know that this beautiful beast on top of me is carrying our kids inside him…that just makes me love him so much that it hurts._

_I’m not going to let anything happen to Renji…ever._

Ichigo groaned as the coil snapped in is belly and he gave himself over the the sweet oblivion that followed. He drank in the sound of Renji’s howl of completion and smiled contentedly as his partner fell down beside him and curled up against his side.

“You good now, Renj?” he panted, wiping a hand over his sweating face.

“Yeah,” Renji sighed, closing his eyes and resting his head on his husband’s shoulder, “I’m good now. You?”

“Couldn’t be better.”

_No one’s gonna hurt you, Renji._

_I won’t ever let them!_


End file.
